Ismael Bonfim came into fight week talking about learning to live with defeat. On Friday, he had another problem to deal with before reaching the cage. The Brazilian weighed 163.5 pounds for his UFC Vegas 122 meeting with Francisco Prado, missing the lightweight limit by 7.5 pounds. Prado made weight at 155. Their October 10 fight in Las Vegas will go ahead at catchweight, with Bonfim forfeiting 25 percent of his purse. It is his third weight miss in the UFC, arriving as he tries to end a three-fight losing streak.
Bonfim Misses Weight For Third Time In UFC
Bonfim was the heaviest offender on a morning when three fighters missed their limits. Ketlen Souza weighed 117 pounds for her strawweight bout with Loopy Godinez, while Brendson Ribeiro came in at 208.5 for his light heavyweight meeting with Felipe Franco.Both of those bouts remain on, with Souza and Ribeiro each surrendering 20 percent of their purses.
For Bonfim, the scale has become a recurring headache. He weighed 161 pounds before facing Chris Padilla in November 2025. His scheduled November 2023 fight with Vinc Pichel was postponed after he came in 3.5 pounds heavy.
In July, Bonfim told MMA Fighting he had relied too heavily on dehydration during the Padilla cut and had changed his approach to dieting. Friday brought another miss, larger than either of those previous failures.
Bonfim Opens Up About Emotional Toll Of Defeats
His struggles have extended beyond making weight. Bonfim lost to Nazim Sadykhov, Padilla and Axel Sola in succession, leaving him 2-4 in the promotion after a spectacular debut knockout of Terrance McKinney.
Speaking to Ag Fight before this weekend’s event, he described the aftermath of his latest defeat and credited his coaches, brother and mentor Gabriel Manzoni with helping him through it.“This isn’t our life; it’s our job. Regardless of what happens, life goes on,” Bonfim said.He spoke about how easily a loss could feel like the end of everything, and about separating a disappointing night at work from the rest of his life.Against Prado, his plan was to move patiently in the opening round, then increase his output and hunt for a knockout from the second.
Prado needs a win himself. The Argentine has lost four straight UFC fights, with his only promotional victory coming against Ottman Azaitar in July 2023.The bout remains on the prelims at the Meta APEX. Bonfim has his chance to stop the losing streak, now with a reduced payday.