Overview
- Joe Pyfer finished Israel Adesanya by second-round TKO on Saturday at UFC Seattle, with referee Herb Dean waving it off after ground-and-pound at Climate Pledge Arena.
- Adesanya rejected retirement in his in-cage interview and later wrote on Instagram that the losses are hard to bear but that he will “respawn and go again.”
- UFC president Dana White said Adesanya “looked great” despite the defeat and highlighted that Pyfer’s win should push him higher in the middleweight rankings.
- Daniel Cormier encouraged Adesanya to continue and criticized the midfight shift to trading in the pocket after early success with leg kicks, calling it the opening Pyfer needed.
- Reaction split across the sport, with fans urging retirement and comparisons to other late-career skids, while peers like Francis Ngannou posted messages of support.