Kayla Harrison admits she was 'scared' about moving to bantamweight and reveals her UFC 300 night weight

Kayla Harrison admits she was nervous when she moved up to bantamweight in her Octagon debut at UFC 300 on Saturday.

Harrison was a true free agent signed by the UFC, but she had to move down to bantamweight for the first time in her career. Harrison had fought at 155 pounds in the PFL, so she had to lose 20 pounds more for her UFC debut, which admittedly worried her.

Kayla Harrison: I was scared the whole camp. Not because of the fight, because of the weight. #TheMMAHour pic.twitter.com/i0ROXJMvlV

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) April 15, 2024

“I mean, I was scared the whole camp. Not from the fight, from the weight. I was scared, I hadn't weighed 70 kg since I was 16. When I did the test cut I got it down to 140,” Harrison continued The MMA lesson. “I gave up millions of dollars, almost guaranteed money, to bet on it, to take a risk. I became very still, I became very still, I prayed and this is where God called me. That was my dream and that's why I started MMA in the first place. I was all in. But I didn’t know if I was going to gain weight, I can’t believe I was going to gain weight.”

“I got down to 137 on Thursday night and then ate and drank a bit. I drink more than I should because I probably swam (the last pound). But I really wanted to sleep, so I drank a little. I woke up and was still a pound over. The last pound was really hard, the last pound was the hardest part for sure,” Harrison said.

Kayla Harrison says it took a while to lose every last pound she feared she would lose. But she was able to lose every last pound and gain weight for her UFC debut. Although the weight cut was tough, Harrison rehydrated well as she weighed 75kg on Saturday morning and weighed 75kg in the arena with her clothes on.

In her UFC debut, Harrison scored a second-round submission win over Holly Holm. With the win, Harrison could fight for UFC gold next time out.