Getty Jorge Masvidal
The UFC’s “Baddest Motherf*****,” Jorge Masvidal, may walk away from mixed martial arts if he loses to Gilbert Burns at UFC 287 this Saturday.
“This could be the last one,” Masvidal said during the UFC 287 Countdown. “If I lose, I’m pretty much calling it quits. A win against Gilbert means that things are heading in the right direction. So, if I roll the dice and I do everything right, I’m going for it all — for one title or many titles.”
Masvidal, a 35-16 professional mixed martial artist, will battle “Durinho” in the event’s co-main slot on April 8 at the Miami-Dade Arena in Miami, Florida. “Gamebred” is currently on a three-fight losing streak, which includes back-to-back failed attempts to become the 170-pound champion, as well as his most recent defeat: a unanimous decision loss to Colby Covington at UFC 272 in March 2022.
Burns (21-5) will enter the Octagon riding the momentum of his first-round stoppage over Neil Magny in January. Both men are facing major stakes on fight night. With Leon Edwards dethroning Kamaru Usman, the man who ended both Masvidal and Burns’ title campaigns, the potential of receiving a title shot with a victory at UFC 287 is on the table.
UFC president Dana White has already announced Covington will battle Edwards next. But should that fight not come to fruition, or the winner of Burns/Masvidal sits out and waits for the welterweight title tilt to unfold, then UFC 287’s co-main event could serve as a title eliminator.
Burns is ranked No. 5 in the division and although Masvidal sits at No. 11, he’d likely take Durniho’s spot in the standings if he comes out on top. And coupled with his star power and violent history with Edwards, it’s feasible that the promotion will offer him his third crack at gold.
But, if he loses, Masvidal’s chance of earning an undisputed UFC strap is derailed even further. And at 38 years old, Gamebred doesn’t appear willing to work his way through several contenders to get back to title contention.
Masvidal Believes There Is a Possibility of White Changing His Mind About Covington’s Title Shot
Masvidal was featured on MMA Fighting’s “The MMA Hour” last week and said that he plans on taking Covington’s title shot by breaking “Gilbert’s face.”
“I love Dana, but Dana says a lot of things,” Masvidal said. “History says one thing — whoever makes the most noise when they fight, whoever f****** sells the most pay-per-views, and whoever fans want to see at the end of the day, that’s who’ll get the title shot on top of it. As I recall, champions have always called the shots, and Colby is only a champion of calling the cops, that c***-sucking b****, p****-ass motherf*****.
“So I’m just going to continue to do me. I’m going to go out there and break f****** Gilbert’s face, and then Leon is going call my name out and then we’ll go fight Leon for this belt, and that’s it. Then Colby can just sit in the timeout box until I call his a** up to fight me again.”
Edwards Doesn’t Want to Fight Covington Next, Is Closely Paying Attention to Burns vs. Masvidal
Edwards put the stamp on his rivalry with Usman after earning his second-straight win over “The Nigerian Nightmare” at UFC 286 last month. With Usman out of the way, White announced during the night’s post-fight press conference that Covington was next up for the Englishman.
However, at the same presser, Edwards shot down the idea of “Chaos” receiving an opportunity at his crown.
“I don’t know how that makes sense,” Edwards said. “He hasn’t fought for over a year and a half, sat out, not injured. I just don’t get how he just slides in for a world title shot when there’s other guys in the division that’s been active, fighting, didn’t sit out. So, yeah. Like I said, I’m the king now. I’ve earned my way. I feel I should decide who’s next.”
Edwards said that the winner of Burns and Masvidal was an interesting challenge, especially the latter considering they engaged in a backstage brawl in 2019 at a UFC London event.
Still, the UFC president is adamant that Covington is the division’s next title challenger.