Kelvin Gastelum breaks silence on Joe Pyfer pulling out of UFC Mexico City

Kelvin Gastelum expressed his disappointment over his fight against Joe Pyfer at UFC Mexico City getting canceled. Gastelum asserted that he couldn't have done anything about the situation and wished Pyfer luck in his future endeavors.

Gastelum was scheduled to face Pyfer at UFC Mexico City this past weekend at CDMX Arena. However, hours before the fight night event, the promotion announced their fight was scrapped after Pyfer fell ill.

In response to the news, Gastelum took to X and voiced his displeasure, 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.''

Pyfer also issued a statement on his Instagram stories, expressing his anger at Mexico. The American middleweight blamed the country for his last-minute pullout and promised to never fight there, saying:

''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...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... 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):

As for Gastelum, his recent octagon visits haven't gone according to plan. The 33-year-old has only secured three wins since his unsuccessful title bid against the then-champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 236 in 2019.

In his last MMA appearance at UFC Saudi Arabia last year, Gastelum defeated Daniel Rodriguez via unanimous decision.

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Kelvin Gastelum reveals he wanted someone ranked at UFC Mexico City

While Kelvin Gastelum didn't feature at UFC Mexico City after his opponent Joe Pyfer withdrew himself from the fight, he was in attendance and witnessed the Fight Night event before partying with Henry Cejudo.

However, before his now-canceled matchup at the event, Gastelum spoke to reporters at media day and expressed his desire to face a ranked contender, saying:

''At first I was a little bothered by the matchup, just because he’s not someone that I was looking for in a fight. He’s not on my radar. I wanted someone ranked. I wanted someone with a bigger name.''

Check out Kelvin Gastelum's comments below (2:45):