“Diamonds go through pressure to shine brighter.” This can be ap͏plied͏ to ma͏ny ͏͏U͏F͏C͏ ͏͏fighte͏rs, and͏ one s͏uch f͏ighte͏r is the middle͏wei͏g͏h͏t ͏prosp͏͏ect, Joe Pyfer. T͏here was͏͏ a͏͏ ͏͏time when ͏’͏͏͏͏BodyB͏͏ag͏z’ w͏as stru͏͏ggli͏ng and h͏͏o͏meles͏s. Hi͏s ͏troubles ͏began ͏͏in͏ an abu͏͏s͏͏iv͏e h͏ouse͏hold and͏ l͏ed ͏h͏i͏m͏ ͏͏t͏o ͏e͏͏͏nd u͏p in ͏a ditch.͏ ͏During͏ his time a͏s a st͏rug͏gling ͏f͏ig͏hter, i͏t was ͏Da͏͏na Whit͏e‘s g͏͏e͏ner͏os͏ity tha͏t helped ͏shape h͏is ͏life.͏

The pressure made him a better fighter and he went on a three-fight winning streak inside the Octagon. His upcoming fight against Marc-Andre Barriault at UFC 303 would be monumental for him as a win could propel him ahead in the rankings. Ahead of his clash, let’s have a look at what happened in Pyfe͏r childhood and how Dana White helped him get over it.

What is Joe Pyfer’s backstory? How did he end up being homeless?

Before getting fame, Joe Pyfer’s life was not as good as it is right now. He was a struggling fighter who was homeless. It all started when his parents broke up and divorced. Out of peer pressure, Pyfer had to move in with his dad, who treated him like a pest. Pyfer’s dad used to beat him brutally till he bleeds, he was subjected to brutal beatings both mentally and physically.

Joe Pyfer was 16 when his father nearly choked him to death. This was the final straw, prompting him to run away and never look back. In his own words, he describes this torture as nothing but daily life in the darkness of hell, “16 years old. [I ran away] ’cause I got beat from the time of about a year old, all the way up until — and I mean beat.” said Pfyer in a conversation with the media.

He further added “I got beat like a grown man; verbally, physically. My four sisters suffered the same thing. One time I got beat up real, real, real bad and, yeah man, I shoved him over a table ’cause he did something, said he was gonna kill me… Shoved him, ran out of the house, and never went back,” 

Pyfer was afraid that he was either gonna hurt him or his father if he stayed in that abusive household. His decision to run away was triggered by his trauma. ‘BodyB͏͏ag͏z’ was homeless and broke when he was in Dana White’s Contender series 47 and it was the UFC supremo who helped him in every possible way.

Dana White goes out of his way to help UFC star

The MMA community often bashes, Dana White for being too uptight with his employees and specifically his fighters but what most of them don’t know is that the UFC head honcho often makes such heartwarming gestures that often go unnoticed and one of them is his help to Joe Pfyer. Dana White not only gave a place to live to Pfyer but also gave him enough money after the DWCS 47 that he was able to continue his training as well as live by.

After his victory against Alen Amedovski, he asked Sean Shebly if he could have a talk with White. “I told [Shelby] I need to talk to him, because I need to thank him because he gave me a home for a year. He gave me money on the side of [DWCS]. And, really, that secured me being able to have a place to live for the next year, on the house of Dana. I think the guy gets sh*t on a lot for not being a good dude… He’s my boss, and I want to like him, I want to respect him, and I have all the respect in the world for him.”

Joe Pyfer wants to be like Dana White someday but right now he has a challenge in front of him in the shape of Andre Barriault. Will he be able to breach the Canadian wall? What are your thoughts on his next match? State your thoughts in the comments below.