Joe Pyfer returns to the Octagon this Saturday at UFC 320, looking to make a statement in the middleweight division when he takes on Abus Magomedov in a high-stakes clash that could elevate that could get Pyfer into the rankings.
Pyfer (14-3) is coming off a decision win over Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 316, a matchup that was originally slated to take place in Mexico before being rebooked.
“Gastelum’s in the past and I got the win and that’s all that matters,” Pyfer told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.
“Before I fought Kelvin I was offered Abus and I said no. I didn’t like it. I didn’t think it made sense. I want to go up in the rankings.”
For Pyfer, the goal was always to climb into the rankings, not risk his position against an unranked opponent like Magomedov. But with circumstances shifting, he now sees opportunity in taking the fight.
“I know it would have done something for my resume to beat a guy like Abus back then, before I beat Kelvin, but Abus was behind me. Then he got the Michel Pereira fight. He won, he was ranked, I wasn’t,” he said.
“The second I won I told my manager I said I want to fight Abus. I didn’t like the narrative of, I’m not going to say who, but they kind of acted like I didn’t want the fight because I was scared. I don’t know what it was. So I was like yeah give me Abus Magomedov. Let’s run it.”
Ahead of his matchup with Magomedov, Pyfer didn’t hold back in outlining what he views as his opponent’s weaknesses. He pointed to Magomedov’s recent setbacks and questioned his cardio as key factors heading into Saturday’s fight.
Pyfer even turned the narrative back on himself, drawing a comparison to the criticism he often faces about his own gas tank.
“He’s a very skilled guy, but he lost to Sean Strickland. Then he lost to Caio (Borralho), but the common theme that I’m seeing in this matchup is that he’s able to be hurt, and he slows down significantly after round 2,” said Pyfer.
“Which is kind of funny because everybody sh*ts on my cardio, and I got the same guy who’s got sh*tty cardio like me.”
Watch the entire media day scrum with Joe Pyfer above. He takes on Abus Magomedov at UFC 320 on Saturday night.
