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Jorge Masvidal Signs New Contract Extension with UFC

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Jorge Masvidal is celebrating a big extension.…

The 37-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist has signed a new contract with the UFC just days before one of the biggest fights of his career.

Jorge Masvidal

While terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, Masvidal’s co-agent, Malki Kawa of First Round Management, announced on social media that Masvidal penned an extension that would make him one of the top-five highest-paid fighters on the UFC roster.

Masvidal, who has been a pro fighter since 2003, fights his former best friend and roommate Colby Covington in a heated grudge match Saturday at UFC 272 at T-Mobile Arena. 

Kawa wrote on Instagram that Masvidal’s deal was signed after five months of negotiations with UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell.

Masvidal has become one of the biggest stars in MMA after a late-career renaissance that was jump-started in 2019 with knockouts of Darren Till and Ben Askren and a TKO win over Nate Diaz. Masvidal’s five-second running knee KO of Askren was the fastest finish in UFC history.

“His contract pays him like a champion and then some,” Kawa, who represents Masvidal along with his brother Abe Kawa, told ESPN. “And the length of time will be that he will finish his career in the UFC.”

Masvidal (35-15) has dropped two straight, both in UFC welterweight title fights against Kamaru Usman, ESPN‘s top pound-for-pound fighter. A Miami native, he has been in the UFC for nine years. Masvidal fought all over the world before that and began his career doing backyard fighting in South Florida alongside the likes of the late Kimbo Slice.

At the UFC 272 news conference Thursday, Masvidal noted that he’ll be getting a portion of the pay-per-view revenue from the card, while Covington, his opponent, will not. Covington has said this fight, because of how personal it is, is not about the money.

“My kids’ kids are gonna be good for a long time,” Masvidal said of his new contract. “So you sell that pay-per-view, boy.”

Jorge Masvidal Signs Multi-Fight Contract with the UFC

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Jorge Masvidal has a new deal…

The 35-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist has signed a new multi-fight contract with the UFC ahead of his bout against Kamaru Usman at UFC 251.

Jorge Masvidal

Masvidal tells ESPN the UFC didn’t give him every single thing he asked for but that the deal came “very, very close” to that and he’s “happy” with it.

Masvidal had been one of the most vocal UFC stars in years on the topic of fighter pay. Last month, the welterweight star tweeted that if the UFC didn’t think he was worth it, the promotion should release him.

Those tweets were made as the negotiations between the UFC and Masvidal for a welterweight title fight against Usman fell apart. 

On Sunday — just six days before the fight — the two sides finally came to an agreement.

Usman will defend his welterweight belt against Masvidal in the main event of UFC 251 on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. 

Usman’s previous opponent, Gilbert Burns, withdrew Friday because of illness. Masvidal is stepping in on six days’ notice, though he was the challenger the UFC tabbed in the first place before contract talks stalled out.

“I’m happy more than anything because I get to break this guy’s face and get paid for it,” Masvidal said.

Masvidal said the UFC’s first offer last month for him to fight Usman was a “s— deal on the pay-per-view end and on the guaranteed side.”

“I can understand you don’t want to give me that much on the guaranteed,” Masvidal said. “But on the pay-per-view, what I bring in, what people purchase, I want more money on that, and they weren’t budging. And that was that. So, all this craziness had to happen for them to come to their senses.”

Masvidal said he won’t stop speaking up about what he perceives as an issue with how much fighters get paid. But he said things have gotten closer to an understanding between him personally and the UFC.

“We’re not there yet, but we’re headed in that direction,” Masvidal said. “Moving forward after this fight, they’re gonna treat me accordingly. Or I’ll just step in last minute six days to go and get paid then, I guess. That’s the new scheme I have to do, whatever. But I’m gonna get paid every time out.”

Masvidal flew to Las Vegas on Sunday and passed a COVID-19 test. He was quarantining in his hotel room Sunday night and will be taking a private jet to Abu Dhabi on Monday. 

Usman is expected to leave Las Vegas on Monday as well. 

Regarding training and being ready to fight, Masvidal said he wasn’t in a full training camp because he didn’t know he’d be competing in a fight until this weekend. But “Gamebred” said he had been at his American Top Team gym two or three times a week and lifting and staying active. Masvidal said he weighed 192 pounds on Saturday. He’ll have to weigh 170 pounds at maximum this coming Friday for the title fight to be official.

“I never stopped training,” Masvidal said. “I’m always training. But I’m not always in the gym doing the specifics.” Masvidal said that he believes he’s in adequate shape to fight Saturday, while taking a shot at Usman compared with two of Masvidal’s recent opponents.

“If you’re asking me, are you in shape?” Masvidal said. “… Maybe not to fight Ben Askren. I’m not in Ben Askren shape, because he’s a hell of a wrestler. Or even to fight a guy like Darren Till. But am I in shape for this bum I’m about to decapitate and baptize? Hell yeah.”

Masvidal will have 48 career pro fights Saturday when he makes the walk against Usman (pending further COVID-19 protocols in Abu Dhabi). That’s the second most ever for a fighter appearing in his or her first UFC title fight. 

If he wins, Masvidal already knows whom he wants to defend the welterweight belt against: Nate Diaz and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.

Jorge Masvidal to Fight Kamaru Usman in Welterwight Title Bout at UFC 251

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Jorge Masvidal is making his title claim…

The 35-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial will fight Kamaru Usman in a welterweight title fight on Saturday at UFC 251 on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

Jorge Masvidal

Masvidal passed his coronavirus test, and both he and Usman will be leaving Las Vegas for Abu Dhabi later Monday, sources said. 

Usman will be on a charter flight, and Masvidal will fly on a private jet, according to sources.

After arriving in Las Vegas on Sunday, both fighters had to take a coronavirus test and then quarantine while awaiting the results. Had they not passed the tests, the fight wouldn’t have been able to happen.

The UFC worked to salvage Usman’s presence on the card after Gilbert Burns was forced to withdraw Friday night.

For the past two months, the UFC and Masvidal were far apart on contract talks to make this fight happen. In the end, the UFC decided to walk away from negotiations about a month ago and gave the title fight to Burns, who recently beat former champion Tyron Woodley.

Afterward, Masvidal posted a series of tweets criticizing the UFC for its business practices and questioning whether the relationship would be severed for some time. But once Burns was forced off the card late Friday, momentum started to build for the original plan, which is a grudge match months in the making. 

Usman and Masvidal have been embroiled in a heated feud that saw the duo get into a shouting match at Super Bowl media row earlier this year in Miami.

On Saturday afternoon, Usman tweeted, “Might be time for the pig to squeal.” Masvidal’s co-manager posted a series of Instagram stories showing Masvidal on the phone, with the caption “negotiating.”

Of course, during the coronavirus pandemic, it isn’t as simple as just agreeing to a fight. Masvidal took and passed a coronavirus antibody test Saturday afternoon. That test shows whether an individual has been exposed to the coronavirus but doesn’t indicate whether the person currently has the virus. The fighters still have to pass more coronavirus tests before fight night, as will all the fighters competing this month in Abu Dhabi.

Masvidal is considered one of the most popular fighters in the sport, with many believing that he was the 2019 fighter of the year after he picked up impressive wins over Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz.