Former MMA double-champ wants to rebook first UFC fight after shocking weight miss

Originally posted on MMA on SI | By Drew Beaupre | Last updated Sep 29, 2025 9:23 AM ET

(Zuffa LLC)

Losene Keita is eager to get a fight with Patricio Pitbull rebooked after being forced out of his highly-anticipated UFC debut.

Boasting an impressive 16-1 record in professional MMA, Keita finally signed with the UFC to considerable fanfare earlier this year and was scheduled to make his Octagon debut opposite former Bellator star Pitbull at UFC Paris.

Complications during his weight cut and a subsequent weight miss unfortunately forced Keita off of UFC Paris, which opened up the chance for other promotional debutants like Ante Delija and Axel Sola to steal the show with stoppage-wins at the Accor Arena.

Losene Keita Calls For UFC To Rebook Patricio Pitbull Fight

There were rumors in the immediate aftermath of UFC Paris that Keita had been cut by the UFC, but that doesn’t seem to be the case given that “Black Panther” recently took to Instagram to try and get a fight with Pitbull back on the UFC calendar.

(Instagram)

“Hey Chihuahua @PatricioPitbull Let’s rebook the fight we al know you are not fighting in Rio. PS. Barking dogs don’t bite”

(Oktagon MMA)

Keita last fought in December at Oktagon 65, where he stopped Ronald Paradeiser in a rematch of their 2022 meeting and reclaimed the Oktagon MMA lightweight belt after he’d also won the promotion’s featherweight strap the previous year.

Patricio Pitbull Misses Out On Fighting At UFC Rio

As noted in Keita’s Instagram story, Pitbull immediately started campaigning for a spot on the upcoming UFC Fight Night card in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil after their UFC Paris matchup fell through.

UFC Rio is scheduled to take place on October 11 at Farmasi Arena, and unfortunately it appears that Pitbull’s offer to fight “anyone who makes weight” wasn’t enough for the UFC to find a suitable opponent for him.

I did my part, but my opponent didn’t do his. I was called on short notice, traveled, dealt with jet lag and made weight. My opponent was at home, had 3 more hours to try and chose not to. I really would like to fight on the UFC Rio card. I’ll face anyone who makes weight @ufc
— Patricio Pitbull (@PatricioPitbull) September 5, 2025

"I did my part, but my opponent didn’t do his. I was called on short notice, traveled, dealt with jet lag and made weight. My opponent was at home, had 3 more hours to try and chose not to. I really would like to fight on the UFC Rio card. I’ll face anyone who makes weight"

Considered by most fans to be the greatest fighter in the history of Bellator MMA, Pitbull finally made the jump to the UFC this year but fell short in his promotional debut against former interim UFC featherweight titleholder Yair Rodriguez. The 38-year-old picked up his first Octagon win when he took a unanimous decision over perennial featherweight contender Dan Ige at UFC 318.