Letorneau reveals he left the UFC after 'almost dying' cutting weight

V. Letorneau left the UFC for Bellator Photo: Disclosure/UFC

Canadian Valerie Letorneau revealed that a weight cut that almost ended in tragedy motivated her to leave the UFC for Bellator. Originally a flyweight (up to 57 kg), the American Top Team fighter sacrificed herself to reach the straw limit (up to 52 kg), as Ultimate had not yet opened its division. Recently, the UFC announced the female flyweight category, but came back hours later.

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After positive results in the UFC, Letorneau was chosen to challenge the champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 193. The weight cut was so radical that the Canadian revealed that she almost died during the process.

“The worst was when I fought with Joanna and you can confirm with Pezão and Mark Hunt, who were taking a sauna with me. They took me to the hospital right after the official weigh-in. I couldn't drink, eat or even speak. I couldn't stop shaking, I couldn't walk. It was cold, cold inside. I felt like my bones were hitting each other and they ended up taking me to the hospital for injections. I was dying”, commented the fighter on the program “The MMA Hour”.

After the defeat to Joanna, Letorneau faced Viviane Sucuri, but did not make weight and lost to the Brazilian. After that, the UFC asked her to fight in the bantamweight division and she decided to leave the promotion for its rival.

“After the last fight (December 2016, loss to Viviane Sucuri), they (UFC) told me they didn't want me to fight at strawweight anymore, because it was too dangerous every time I tried to reach 52kg. They were worried that something really bad would happen to me, so they offered me to fight at bantamweight (up to 61kg). But I wasn't interested in that division. So, I asked why they didn't release me from the contract, since I wasn't in the flyweight category. They said they weren't ready to open the 57kg division yet and, therefore, they gave me the chance to continue fighting”, declared the Canadian.

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