UFC middleweight contender Joe Pyfer shared his reaction to his upcoming matchup against Bo Nickal at UFC Cleveland.
When the UFC announced that Pyfer, the No. 5-ranked middleweight fighter in the Meta UFC Rankings, was taking on the No. 12-ranked Nickal at UFC 335, many fans were left scratching their heads, as most thought that Pyfer would get someone ranked in the top five for his next fight.
Instead, Pyfer got someone ranked lower in the division in what was a bit of a surprise to many — but not to Pyfer himself, who said he understands the matchmaking.
Joe Pyfer Understands Bo Nickal Matchup
Speaking to Ariel Helwani, Pyfer said that he understands why the UFC booked him against Nickal — first for UFC 335 in December, before the fight was moved to UFC Cleveland in February.
“I don’t understand why everybody’s so confused by the matchmaking, the division’s kind of stuck. I think the fight makes sense a lot. Yeah, I wasn’t expecting Bo at all, to be honest, but I was very excited about it. I think it’s a great fight,” Pyfer said.
“I don’t understand why everybody’s so confused by the matchmaking, the division’s kind of stuck.
I think the fight makes sense a lot. Yeah, I wasn’t expecting Bo at all, to be honest, but I
Joe Pyfer Could Have Fought Anthony Hernandez
According to Pyfer, when the UFC told him that the Nickal fight had to be moved to February, he was given the option of fighting Anthony Hernandez at UFC 335 instead.
However, with Hernandez coming off two straight losses to UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland and Gregory Rodrigues, Pyfer opted to wait things out and fight Nickal at UFC Cleveland instead, as Nickal is the bigger name and is coming off two straight knockout wins over Rodolfo Vieira and Kyle Daukaus.
“Joe Pyfer confirms he opted to wait for Bo Nickal rather than face replacement Anthony Hernandez at UFC 335.”
Though Hernandez is ranked at No. 8 in the rankings, four spots ahead of Nickal, it does make sense that Pyfer chose to wait around for Nickal instead. Not only is he a bigger name, but he has far more momentum at the moment. Pyfer was going to fight below him either way, so waiting for a fighter coming off a win is sensible.
Joe Pyfer Reacts to Bo Nickal Fight at UFC Cleveland