Cameron Smotherman collapsed after stepping off the scale at the early weigh-ins of UFC 324 on Friday, immediately raising concerns about his health and the status of his bantamweight fight with Ricky Turcios in the Paddy Pimblett vs Justin Gaethje undercard. He reached the bantamweight limit before passing out on stage in scenes described as “scary” by witnesses and analysts.
Cameron Smotherman collapses during the weigh-in
Cameron Smotherman successfully weighed in at 135.5 pounds for his scheduled bantamweight prelim against Ricky Turcios at UFC 324. According to multiple reports, he appeared to gain weight, turned to step off the scale, then suddenly lost consciousness and slumped face-first onto the stage.
Officials and members of the UFC staff immediately rushed in as broadcast cameras captured the fall in real time. On-air analysts including Daniel Cormier and Chris Weidman responded in real time and later described the moment as terrifying to watch.
Reports indicate that Smotherman initially lay motionless before beginning to regain consciousness while being attended to by doctors and committee staff. He eventually sat up, was given water and was then helped or carried off stage to continue receiving treatment backstage.
Smotherman was later transported to a hospital for further evaluation incident. At the time of reporting, media outlets state that he is recovering, but no detailed medical diagnosis or formal UFC statement on the exact cause of the collapse has been released.
Smotherman’s fight with Ricky Turcios was part of the UFC 324 preliminaries on the same card that features an interim lightweight title fight between Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett, teamed with Sean O’Malley vs. Song Yadong and Derrick Lewis vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta. Following the collapse, several reports noted that his fight is in serious doubt and that it is “highly likely” that it will be removed from the event pending medical clearance.
As of the latest updates on weigh-in day, there has been no official confirmation that the Turcios vs. Smotherman fight has been canceled, but reporting from multiple media outlets indicates the bout is at significant risk. Any final decision is expected to depend on medical assessments following his hospital evaluation and communication from the UFC and athletic commission.
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