chris duncan successfully weighed in on Friday for the UFC Fight Night main event at the Meta APEX, locking in a five-round lightweight headliner against Renato Moicano. The official weigh-ins ended with the top two fights intact, but three fighters missing weight and immediate penalties being confirmed before Saturday’s event at the UFC Apex. The biggest weight-cut trouble spot belonged to undefeated Brazilian prospect Rafael Estevam, whose miss forced his bout to move forward as a catchweight with a purse forfeit.
Weigh-ins end with the main event intact
In the featured fight at the top of the card, Renato Moicano and chris duncan both came in at 156 pounds, clearing the lightweight limit and securing the main event as scheduled. The matchup is set to take place as a five-round lightweight bout between American Top Team teammates.
Elsewhere at the top of the card, the co-main event also went smoothly on the scale. Virna Jandiroba weighed in at 116 pounds and Tabatha Ricci came in at 115. 5 pounds, keeping their strawweight clash on track with both fighters still positioned in the title conversation heading into Saturday.
Rafael Estevam misses again, UFC confirms catchweight and 20% penalty
The most consequential miss came from Rafael Estevam, an undefeated prospect from Brazil, who weighed 136. 5 pounds for a scheduled bantamweight bout against Ethyn Ewing. That placed him a half-pound above the non-title limit of 136 pounds.
The UFC officially announced that Estevam’s fight will still take place as a catchweight contest. As a penalty for missing weight, Estevam will forfeit 20 percent of his fight purse to Ewing.
The miss adds to a pattern: this is the third time Estevam has failed to make weight in four UFC appearances. His previous misses included two at 135 pounds and one while fighting at 125 pounds. Following a four-pound miss in August 2025, Estevam addressed the issue in a post-fight press conference, saying, “You have to either prepare yourself or focus on the weight. ”
Despite holding an undefeated record of 14-0, the repeated problems on the scale now sit alongside the momentum he has built, with Saturday’s fight presenting another pressure test against Ewing, a prospect coming off a win over Malcolm Wellmaker in his lone UFC appearance.
Two more fighters miss; one recovers on a second attempt
Estevam was not alone in struggling at the official weigh-ins. Light heavyweight Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev initially weighed in at 207 pounds, one pound above the limit, but later returned and successfully shed the extra weight.
Lightweight Darrius Flowers was the third fighter to miss, coming in at 156. 5 pounds, a half-pound over the limit. Like Estevam, Flowers’ bout will proceed at a catchweight, and Flowers will also forfeit 20 percent of his purse.
Flowers enters Saturday under added strain: he has three defeats and zero wins in the UFC, and faces veteran Lando Vannata in a fight that will now carry the same catchweight conditions and financial penalty attached to the miss.
Quick context and what comes next for Saturday at the UFC Apex
Friday’s weigh-ins at the Meta APEX set the full slate for UFC Fight Night, confirming which matchups would proceed normally and which would shift to catchweight after the misses. With the scale drama settled, attention now turns to Saturday at the UFC Apex, where the card is set to stream on Paramount+.
All eyes next move to fight night execution: the UFC has already clarified the status of the altered bouts, the fines, and the main-event readiness. For the headliner, the final step is simple—walk to the cage on Saturday and deliver, with chris duncan officially on weight and the main event ready to go.
