Rivalries: Jorge Masvidal

Jorge Masvidal from all outward appearances seems to relish every aspect of mixed martial arts, from preparation and promotion to planning and execution. His affinity for the blood, sweat and tears lends itself to hostility with those who oppose him inside the cage, and mesmerizing theater often follows.

Masvidal’s career to this point has been equal parts gripping and maddening. His well-rounded skills tease boundless possibilities, but he has yet piece together enough consistency to maximize his potential. The evidence: Masvidal has fought multiple times in no fewer than four major organizations—the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Bellator MMA, Strikeforce and Sengoku—without capturing a title. However, that strike against him could soon change.

A perfect 2019 campaign saw Masvidal go 3-0 and rise to the top of the UFC rankings at 170 pounds. The American Top Team export now finds himself in prime position to challenge Kamaru Usman for the undisputed welterweight crown once the sport clears the COVID-19 hurdle and resumes it schedule. Until then, a look at some of the rivalries that lit Masvidal’s path along the way:

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Al Iaquinta

The Serra-Longo Fight Team representative walked away with a contentious split decision over Masvidal in the UFC Fight Night 63 co-main event on April 4, 2015 at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia. Two of the three cageside judges—Dave Tirelli and Cardo Urso—scored it 29-28 for Iaquinta, while Douglas Crosby cast a dissenting 30-27 nod in Masvidal’s favor. Masvidal turned in a dominant first five minutes, as he bashed “The Ultimate Fighter 15” finalist with a punishing jab. Late in the round, he drove Iaquinta to the canvas with a flying knee, a short right hook to the temple and follow-up punches. Masvidal then opened a gruesome cut under the New Yorker’s right eye with an elbow strike from the top. Iaquinta, though bloodied, weathered the onslaught. From there, Masvidal seemed to sit on his lead. His offensive output dwindled, though his jab remained an effective weapon. Iaquinta invested in leg kicks and brought his overhand right into play, slowly turning the tide in his favor. Fans booed the decision, leading an incensed Iaquinta to storm out of the cage in a rage. It was Masvidal’s last appearance at 155 pounds before he returned to the welterweight division.

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Ben Askren

Masvidal could not have handled business any better under the UFC 239 flag on July 6, 2019 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. There, “Gamebred” wiped out four-time NCAA All-American wrestler and onetime Olympian Ben Askren with a flying knee just five seconds into their welterweight showcase, as he handed the former Bellator and One Championship titleholder his first professional defeat in record time. It remains the fastest knockout in UFC history. Afterward, Masvidal scoffed at those who questioned the need for follow-up punches on the already-unconscious Askren.

“They were super necessary,” Masvidal said. “The referee hadn’t pulled me off. My job is to hit somebody until the referee pulls me off. To those people, I would say maybe don’t watch MMA. Go back to soccer.”

Askren stoked the Miami native’s competitive fires during the weeks that preceded their brief encounter inside the Octagon.

“There are not too many people that I have disliked,” Masvidal said. “I have over 50 pro fights, and he is one of them. He talked about my manhood. He talked about my culture and ethnicity. Why do certain people get to do stuff online? So you can do anything? Everything is cool before a fight? You are allowed to do and say what you want, like not what other fighters are doing. Talking about people’s religion, wife and even kids, that’s cool? But after a fight I’m not allowed to showboat and rub it in your face to show that guys like you should say, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t talk so much s--- because when I cross one of the real mother f------, he is going to make me pay for it. They are going to embarrass the s--- out of me.’ It’s not over for Ben, either. He still has to deal with me. If I see him at Whole Foods, I’m going to slap that dude up because I don’t like him.”

The five-second knockout of Askren catapulted Masvidal into the highest-profile fight of his career less than four months later.

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Nate Diaz

The symbolic Baddest Mother F----- title was on the line when Masvidal locked horns with Nate Diaz in the UFC 244 main event on Nov. 2, 2019 at Madison Square Garden in New York. “Gamebred” controlled a majority of the exchanges before being awarded a technical knockout when the cageside physician recommended a stoppage between the third and fourth rounds, citing cuts above and below Diaz’s right eye. The decision was met with consternation from the two combatants and the 20,143 fans in attendance.

“I don’t like to leave the ring like this, with my opponent conscious,” said Masvidal, who called for a rematch to settle what he viewed as unfinished business. “There’s only one way to do it and that’s to baptize them, and I didn’t get to baptize Nate, so we’re going to run it back.”

The long-awaited battle, while entertaining, was not particularly competitive. Masvidal outlanded the Stockton, California, native by close to a 3-to-1 margin in terms of significant strikes and displayed a far more diverse set of skills. He knocked down Diaz in each of the first two rounds and was credited with the only takedown of the fight.

“The only strategy was to take him out,” Masvidal said. “Nate is a dog. I was sitting on that chair going into the fourth and fifth round, and I was hyped. I was ready to go. I saw it in his eyes. He was ready to go for [the] championship rounds. I’m not the doctor here, so don’t boo me. I came in here to fight, and it’s not my fault that the doctor stopped it.”