Mixed martial arts (MMA) fans were robbed of an absolute banger last weekend (Sat., Sept. 6, 2025) at UFC Paris after Losene Keita missed weight by three pounds, forcing his highly anticipated showdown with former two-division champion Patricio Pitbull to be scrapped.
If it were up to Keita, though, the fight still would’ve gone down. The 26-year-old
even offered Pitbull half of his purse in a desperate bid to keep the bout alive.
Three days after UFC Paris, Pitbull’s brother, Patricky Freire, leaked backstage footage showing a distraught Keita pleading with Patricio to take the fight.
“Please! I f—ked up,” Keita said. “Please. I’ve been waiting for this call all of my life. Normally, I don’t even talk to my opponents like this.”
When Pitbull asked why he came in heavy, Keita admitted he simply couldn’t shed any more pounds.
“Because I’m not sweating. We tried everything, and I’m not sweating anymore,” Keita explained. “This is my life. I just want to fight. I haven’t fought in one year. Please.”
Pitbull, ever the professional, wasn’t buying the sob story.
“I gave you all of the benefit [for taking this fight against a UFC newcomer]. But I cannot give you the benefit of the weight,” Pitbull responded.
Keita countered that he was only one kilo over and begged once more
“You can take half of my money, I don’t care. Don’t do this to me. Bro, you are a fighter…I never missed weight in my life…I’m showing weakness right now. You’re guy is even filming,” Keita concluded.
But Pitbull stood firm.
“I am a fighter, but I am professional” Pibull said. I’m 145 lbs right now… You have one hour and half to try. You’re strong. You’re younger, stronger, faster. Go to Lightweight.”
Ouch.
In hindsight, the weight miss looks like a serious miscalculation. The bout came together on just three weeks’ notice, and Keita hadn’t successfully made Featherweight in two years, competing instead at Lightweight on the European regional circuit.
Fortunately for “Black Panther,” UFC brass didn’t cut him after the incident. Still, his days at 145 pounds may be numbered.
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