The tournament was intended for heavyweights, and Sakuraba, at 183 pounds, was nearly twenty pounds beneath the UFC's 200 pound designation for the weight class. Reporting himself as 203 pounds in order to gain entry, Sakuraba was paired off against the 243 pound Brazilian jiu-jitsu blackbelt and former Extreme Fighting champion, Marcus Silveira.
The tournament was designed for heavyweight competitors, but Sakuraba, weighing in at 183 pounds, was far too light for the UFC's 200-pound weight class. To compete, he falsely reported his weight as 203 pounds, resulting in a match against Marcus Silveira, a 243-pound Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and former Extreme Fighting champion.