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Keita was scheduled to make his promotional debut against Freire at UFC Paris last weekend. However, Keita weighed in at 149 pounds, missing the non-title featherweight limit of 146 pounds. The Belgian prospect tried his best to persuade Freire to accept a catchweight fight, even offering half of his purse.
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New footage revealed Keita pleading with “Pitbull” backstage while the former Bellator champ remained adamant. While Freire insisted that Keita should continue cutting weight with several hours left, “Black Panther” explained that his body had stopped sweating. However, Freire stood his ground and advised Keita to move up to lightweight.
“I f—-ed it up, I know it’s my fault… I tried everything, I’m not sweating no more… This is my life. I just want to fight,” Keita said.
Freire replied: “That’s your fault, not mine… go to lightweight.”
New footage shows Losene Keita pleading with Patricio Pitbull to keep the fight on at #UFCParis after he missed weight
🗣️ Losene: “I f***ed it up, I know it’s my fault… I tried everything, I’m not sweating no more… This is my life. I just want to fight.”
🗣️ Pitbull: “That’s… pic.twitter.com/cFwiumxNi4
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) September 9, 2025
UFC Exec Believes Keita’s Place on Roster is Secure
UFC senior vice president of international operations Dave Shaw believes that Keita will likely get another opportunity to compete in the promotion, though their were rumors that “Black Panther” would be cut.
“I believe he does. Honestly, I don’t know the specifics. I think a few of us were surprised the fight didn’t happen, but in any case, it’s going to be good to have him on the roster,” Shaw said at the UFC Paris post-fight press conference. “[He hasn’t been cut] – not that I know of.”
Keita is the former Oktagon MMA two-division champ who riding a five-fight winning streak. Meanwhile, Freire is coming off a tight unanimous decision win against Dan Ige after dropping his UFC debut against Yair Rodriguez.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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