Israel Adesanya had his moments against Joe Pyfer at UFC Seattle. | Getty/UFC
Although he suffered his fourth consecutive loss in the UFC Seattle headliner, Israel Adesanya hasn’t lost his competitive fire.
The former middleweight champion started well but was gradually overwhelmed by Joe Pyfer in a second-round technical knockout loss in Saturday’s main event at the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. It was the third consecutive outing in which “The Last Stylebender” has been finished inside the distance.
Despite those discouraging circumstances, Adesanya currently has no designs on calling it a career.
“You keep going. Again and again and again and again and again,” Adesanya said during a post-fight interview in the Octagon.
“I’m not f—-ing leaving. You’ll never stop me. I might get beat, but I’ll always remain undefeated.”
Adesanya is regarded as one of the top middleweight champions in UFC history. He claimed the 185-pound strap with a second-round knockout of Robert Whittaker in October 2019 and defended the belt five times before falling to Alex Pereira at UFC 281. The City Kickboxing member regained the title by knocking out Pereira in their rematch, but his current skid began at UFC 293, when he relinquished the championship to Sean Strickland in a significant upset in September 2023.
‘I Expected His Best’
Adesanya outstruck Pyfer in the opening stanza, but his decision to stand and trade with his powerful foe led to his demise in Round 2. After getting rocked on the feet, Adesanya was taken down and eventually succumbed to ground-and-pound at the 4:18 mark of the period. “The Last Stylebender” had no regrets regarding his approach.
“I expected the best Joe Pyfer. I knew this was his biggest fight ever…There was nothing surprising — I expected his best, and he brought the best,” Adesanya said. “I said before coming into this fight, it’s been 13 months. I wanted to feel like I’d been in a fight. He gave me just that.”
