Joe Pyfer blames Mexico for last-minute pullout: "I'll never go back to that country"

Joe Pyfer has voiced his frustration over his last-minute pullout from UFC Mexico City. Pyfer went on a lengthy tirade against Mexico, revealing the reasons behind his withdrawal and vowing never to return.

Pyfer was set to face Kelvin Gastelum on the main card of UFC Mexico City, which took place this past weekend at CDMX Arena in Mexico City. However, 'Bodybagz' withdrew himself from the bout due to illness just hours before the event.

Pyfer recently took to his Instagram stories, expressing displeasure over the cancellation of the Gastelum fight. The American middleweight explained the situation in detail and went on an angry rant targeting Mexico and vowed to never return.

''I don’t care if it’s offensive to you, I will never go back to that country. I did everything right. I slept in a tent. I did all this work to still get sick. Some people are saying it wasn’t the food, saying I got altitude sickness. I’m not a f*cking geographic f*cking, you know, elevation f*cking scientist, but I was told as long as I acclimated, which I did for two months, slept in a tent on the f*cking floor – you know, I did everything that I could to prepare.''

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He continued:

''If that’s what altitude and elevation is, f*ck that country. I will never fight there again. Sh*t hole. Not going back. Don’t care if that’s offensive to you. You’re not the one fighting. S*ck my ba**s. Literally.''

Check out Joe Pyfer's comments below (via Jed. I Goodman's X post):

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Pyfer (13-3) was on a three-fight win streak after securing a UFC contract in 2022. His only promotional loss came against Jack Hermansson at UFC Vegas 86 via unanimous decision. The 28-year-old got back to winning ways with an opening-round knockout victory over Marc-Andre Barriault at UFC 303 last year.

Kelvin Gastelum reacts to Joe Pyfer's pullout from UFC Mexico

Joe Pyfer's withdrawal from his bout against Kelvin Gastelum left the latter without an opponent at UFC Mexico City, which resulted in Gastelum getting removed from the fight card.

Gastelum recently took to X and shared a clip of his live reaction to the news that the Pyfer fight has been canceled, writing:

''I got the call that my opponent got sick and had to pull out the fight. Obviously I’m gutted to the core about this situation that is out of my control but Wish my opponent all the best in the future.''

Check out the post below:

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Swagat is a dynamic MMA writer with a total experience of a little less than a year, which includes time in retail and sports journalism. He holds an MBA degree.

Swagat fell in love with the sport after watching the iconic grudge match between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier at UFC 182 in early 2015. Nate Diaz holds a special place in his heart for the Stockton native’s entertaining fan-friendly style and ability to deliver exciting fights regardless of the opponent.

In terms of rule changes in MMA, Swagat advocates for making scores public after each round, adding transparency to judging decisions.

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Edited by Anurag Mitra