Jorge Masvidal opens up on plans for boxing return, potential Nate Diaz rematch
Former UFC title challenger Jorge Masvidal wants to show boxing the respect it deserves.
‘Gamebred’ officially came out of retirement earlier this year. Now, that didn’t come as a huge shock, given the fact that Jorge Masvidal has teased a return to fighting for a while now. Last April, the former UFC title challenger retired after a lopsided unanimous decision defeat to Gilbert Burns in Miami.
However, Jorge Masvidal hasn’t been linked to a return to the UFC. Instead, the former welterweight contender reportedly wants to move to the boxing ring. Not long after he announced returning to fighting, Masvidal was linked to a rematch of sorts with Nate Diaz.
At UFC 244 in November 2019, Jorge Masvidal handed the Stockton slugger a TKO loss. In the process, he won the ceremonial ‘BMF’ title, in the first appearance of the championship. Five years on from that fight in the cage, the two will reportedly run it back in the boxing ring later this year.
Speaking in a recent interview, Jorge Masvidal opened up on his move into the boxing ring. While he declined to comment on a rematch with Nate Diaz, he did say that various MMA fighters hadn’t taken the sport seriously when they moved over. Masvidal also took issue with antics in recent boxing matches, such as fighters taunting their opponent mid-fight. That’s something that Diaz does, often.
Former UFC title challenger Jorge Masvidal opens up on plans to return to the boxing
“I’m definitely trying to do some boxing matches.” Jorge Masvidal stated in the interview with Lowkick MMA when asked about his future in combat sports. “I love MMA, it’s my favorite sport in the whole world. I did it for 20 years, it’ll always be number one to me. But, a chance to do some boxing matches, things like that, I wouldn’t mind breaking facing someone’s face. The fisticuffs way, you know.”
He continued, “Boxing was also like, the first combat sport that I really like discovered and started getting into. Then, four, five, six years later, I discovered MMA when I’m 11… I took off on that MMA journey, but I always loved boxing. Once I got to the UFC, I signed a strict contract that doesn’t let me do anything else. So, I never got to test my boxing skills. I think it’s a good time for me now to test my boxing skills, especially against a lot of these guys that don’t respect the sport.”
“…These guys are doing half-assed jobs on these shows. That’s why they aren’t able to go out there and be mean every second of every minute of every round.” Jorge Masvidal concluded. “They’re f*cking taking time off, they’re f*cking pointing at each other, they’re taking selfies in the f*cking ring. When I go in there, it’s only to scrap man.”
What do you make of these comments? Do you want to see Jorge Masvidal in the boxing ring?
Topics:
Boxing News Jorge Masvidal
