On Saturday, Pyfer steps in with Abdul Razak Alhassan, a battle-tested judoka with big finishing power and coming off a second-round stoppage win over Claudio Ribeiro in January. While consistency has largely eluded Alhassan over the course of his UFC career, the veteran 38-year-old has made 11 of his 17 career starts inside the Octagon, posting six stoppage wins, including a 17-second knockout of Alessio Di Chirico two fights back.
Order UFC 294: Makhachev vs Oliveira 2
For Pyfer, this is a second straight matchup against an experienced opponent, but one that is more than happy to engage with him on the feet and has the power to match what he brings to the table. Part of what makes this pairing so compelling — and Pyfer so intriguing overall — is that he actually comes from a grappling background, having wrestled in high school and practiced Brazilian jiu jitsu for quite some time.
This feels like an opportunity for “Bodybagz” to potentially show another layer of his game, but it could also just be an additional chance to showcase the knockout power that has largely carried him to this point in his UFC journey.