Kelvin Gastelum is heading back to middleweight.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed to MMA Fighting that the UFC is targeting a matchup between Gastelum and Joe Pyfer for the UFC’s return to Mexico City on March 29. MMA Mania was first to report the bout.
After a 12-fight middleweight run, Gastelum returned to the welterweight division losing via lopsided submission to Sean Brady at UFC Austin in December 2023. Gastelum was slated to face Daniel Rodriguez in a 170-pound divisional tilt at UFC Saudi Arabia this past June, but weight cutting issues led to the contest being pumped up to a 185-pound matchup, which Gastelum won vid unanimous decision.
Pyfer is set to make his sixth UFC appearance after going 1-1 in the octagon in 2024. In his first UFC main event, Pyfer suffered his first promotional loss to Jack Hermansson at UFC Vegas 86 this past Feburary, but was able to bounce back with a first-round knockout win against Marc-Andre Barriault at UFC 303 in June.
Damon Martin contributed to this report.
