Kelvin Gastherm didn’t like Joe Piffer’s negative comments about Mexico.
Gastherm and Pyfer are scheduled to be disposed of in Mexico City earlier this year, the latter suffering from a last minute illness, where he was forced to bow from the match. Frustrated with the situation, Pyfer took responsibility for Mexico, calling it a “shit hole” country and vowed to never return.
Needless to say, Gastelam, a Mexican-American, did not approach the statement kindly.
“Obviously, it left a bit of sour taste in my mouth,” Gastherum said on UFC 316 Media Day. “I think the way he did it was a bit rude. He shouldn’t say those things about other people’s countries, and I think he should have gotten better about the way he did it. I don’t think those comments were right.”
Kelvin Gastherm was warned when he would rebook his match with “body bags”
Initially, the UFC wanted to rebook the Gastelum and Pyfer fight the following weekend, but the once-tentative middleweight title challenger felt it would only give the opponent an advantage.
“Yeah, they wanted me to fight Joe Piffer. I didn’t want the next weekend. I think I’ll give him an advantage. You give him a class of higher weight, not elevation. It gives him an advantage.
Instead, they will spread inside the Prudential Centre this Saturday night. Gastherm enters the match that won two of his final three, including a decision victory over Chris Curtis and Daniel Rodriguez.
As for Pyfer, “Bodybagz” is 4-1 in the octagon, and his only loss comes in 2024 against Jack Hermanson. He bouncing back at the same time last year with a brutal 85-second knockout from Mark Andre Baria.