Losene Keita
Black Panther
Belgium
Second chance for UFC
Keita will fight fellow featherweight Muhammadjon Naimov at UFC Paris on Sept. 5, according to Marcel Dorff of Heavy on Sports.
ANALYSIS
For the UFC, Keita logged his debut last March, but he narrowly lost to Nathaniel Wood via split decision. It will not get any easier for the former considering his next opponent's UFC record is 6-1. Nonetheless, as an ex-Oktagon champion, expectations for Keita are high and that he can get the job done in his second chance with the UFC.
For the UFC, Keita logged his debut last March, but he narrowly lost to Nathaniel Wood via split decision. It will not get any easier for the former considering his next opponent's UFC record is 6-1. Nonetheless, as an ex-Oktagon champion, expectations for Keita are high and that he can get the job done in his second chance with the UFC.
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Strong showing in debut loss
Keita lost to Nathaniel Wood via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 28-29) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in London.
ANALYSIS
A former two-division Oktagon MMA champion, Keita finally made his much-anticipated UFC debut here against a quality opponent and looked good despite the setback. There was virtually no separation between the two in what was a 15-minute kickboxing match, outside of the fact Keita attempted just 119 significant strikes compared to 178 from Wood. Plenty of standouts on the European regional scene have come to the UFC recently and really struggled. Keita seems unlikely to fall into that group, although he needs to find a win his next time out. It's important to remember this was his first fight of any kind since December 2024.
A former two-division Oktagon MMA champion, Keita finally made his much-anticipated UFC debut here against a quality opponent and looked good despite the setback. There was virtually no separation between the two in what was a 15-minute kickboxing match, outside of the fact Keita attempted just 119 significant strikes compared to 178 from Wood. Plenty of standouts on the European regional scene have come to the UFC recently and really struggled. Keita seems unlikely to fall into that group, although he needs to find a win his next time out. It's important to remember this was his first fight of any kind since December 2024.
UFC debut re-scheduled
Keita (not injury related) is scheduled to compete against Nathaniel Wood in a featherweight fight at UFC London on March 21, per Damon Martin of MMA Fighting.
ANALYSIS
Instead of Patricio Freire, Keita will compete against a relatively lesser-known name on excellent momentum in the form of a 6-1 record across his last seven fights. Outside of the UFC, Keita is 16-1 with 10 KO/TKOs.
Instead of Patricio Freire, Keita will compete against a relatively lesser-known name on excellent momentum in the form of a 6-1 record across his last seven fights. Outside of the UFC, Keita is 16-1 with 10 KO/TKOs.
Will not fight Pitbull
Keita is not fighting Patricio Freire at UFC Paris on Saturday, Aaron Bronsteter of Sportsnet reports.
ANALYSIS
Keita missed weight, weighing in at 149 pounds. Pitbull has not agreed to fight at catchweight, and so their upcoming bout is scrapped altogether entirely. That leaves Keita without an opponent for either UFC Paris or in the near future.
Keita missed weight, weighing in at 149 pounds. Pitbull has not agreed to fight at catchweight, and so their upcoming bout is scrapped altogether entirely. That leaves Keita without an opponent for either UFC Paris or in the near future.
Pitbull to begin UFC career
Keita is scheduled to compete against Patricio Freire in a featherweight fight at UFC Paris on Sept. 6, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Keita is a 27-year-old featherweight with 16 wins, 10 by KO/TKO, in 17 fights across his MMA career. He will take on a relatively new UFC newcomer in Freire, 1-1 since signing with the promotion. It will be a battle between former non-UFC promotional champions, Keita having recently vacated the Oktagon Lightweight Championship and a former Bellator champ in Pitbull.
Keita is a 27-year-old featherweight with 16 wins, 10 by KO/TKO, in 17 fights across his MMA career. He will take on a relatively new UFC newcomer in Freire, 1-1 since signing with the promotion. It will be a battle between former non-UFC promotional champions, Keita having recently vacated the Oktagon Lightweight Championship and a former Bellator champ in Pitbull.