Four-time Bellator middleweight tournament participant Brian Rogers has decided that he is leaving the middleweight division and will be moving up to the light heavyweight division.
Rogers (11-8) announced his decision to move up to the 205 pound division on today’s edition of The MMA Report Live and explained that his head coach, Marc Montoya is the person who approached him about moving up in weight following his lost to Joey Beltran at Bellator 136.
“The big decision coming off that lost to Joey Beltran, which I think I won on a side note. I think I won the first round,” Rogers told The MMA Report. “I think I won the third round as well. I got rocked with one minute left to go in the second and some of those judges gave him a 10-8. I put a hand down, but did not drop. I took some shots and ended up losing a decision. I thought at worse it was a draw. Winning the first and the third. Looking past that and going into the fight, I am not the tallest middleweight by any means or anything like that. I think I would be short at 155 to be honest. I am just under 6 foot. 5’11 and change.”
“I was able to diet myself down to maybe 202 or 203. Started my water load and what not. I am pretty capable of drinking a lot of water in order to make the cut. I drank about 3 and a half gallons on the Sunday before the fight, which put me up to 220 pounds. Obviously, that was a big weight cut and I made the weight just fine, but it was a bit of a struggle. I never come close to missing weight. I know how to do it properly and I use George Lockhart for my nutrition. But it has taken a lot out of me.”
“I think it’s effecting my cardio. People are always on my cardio in the media. Well they do not realize that I cut a fair amount of weight like everybody else. Also, my durability as well. I think it can be compromise as well when you cut a decent amount of weight. I talked to my head coach Marc Montoya and he actually brought up the idea to me that he thinks that I should move to the light heavyweight division, which I am going to do.”
Prior to Montoya bringing up the idea to Rogers about moving up to light heavyweight, had he though about going up to the 205 pound division?
“No. I just thought it was kind of the way things were. You have to cut weight. You have to do this and you have to do that,” Rogers explained. “Which is why I employed a nutritionist and always had good strength and conditioning coaches. But it kind of made sense to me because you are losing a lot of your natural gifts. You are faster and quicker and more explosive than virtually everyone you fight. He [Montoya] was like that should carry over to 205 and then some. Right now, I am in shape and training. I am a little heavier than I want to be. I have been up and down between 228 and 230.”
“I am kind of working on just leaning out and trying to walk around at 220 as I start to fight at light heavyweight. I think it [fighting at middleweight] was taking away more than helping. I am not the tallest and I am going to be short in any division. I was in Las Vegas for International Fight Week and I look at a guy like Rashad Evans and Anthony Johnson. Anthony Johnson is taller than me and Rashad is about my same size. He has had a successful career. I have a similar frame as a lot of guys, but just a little shorter than them.
In terms of when Rogers could make his Bellator light heavyweight debut, the fighter out of Factory X Muay Thai is looking to make his 205 pound debut in the fall.
“I think I will be ready to go in September or October from what I have been told. I really wanted to get on the September 19 card because it’s showcasing the 205 pound division. Even as an undercard bout, preliminary bout, replacement bout, or something like that. Does not look like that is going to work out. I have heard some other things about dates and I do not know if they are public, but I am looking for September or October.”
Brian would like to thank his sponsors Spider Tech Tape, Crows Auto Body, Voyager Athletes Sporting Equipment, Lana’s Egg Whites, Future Legend, and Executive Tailors Custom Suits. Also, he would like to thank Factory X, everyone in Ohio, and Strong Style MMA for there continued friendship and support.