Masvidal: I’m just fighting to get paid
Jorge Masvidal: “It’s no disrespect to Iaquinta; I think he’s a talented dude, and I haven’t said that about many dudes in the division – it’s just not the fight I want.”
UFC Fight Night 63 co-main event fighter Jorge Masvidal has been very vocal that Al Iaquinta fight isn’t one he wanted. Not because he doesn’t respect his opponent, but because he wanted a higher profile, higher ranked opponent. So why is he fighting? To get paid:
It’s no disrespect to Iaquinta; I think he’s a talented dude, and I haven’t said that about many dudes in the division – it’s just not the fight I want, he said on Thursday in Fairfax.
So what’s the solution? In theory, Masvidal could have withdrawn from the event or asked for another opponent at a later date. Such tactics don’t always win favor with the UFC’s matchmaking team, but it might have led him to an opponent he felt better about.
That, in turn, might have given him more fire to train hard in the gym.
But when you’ve been fighting as long as Masvidal has, you’re pretty well adjusted to the idea that it’s very frequently not fun, and very often a job. You clock in.
Get paid, man, he said of his reasons for taking on Iaquinta. I’ve got kids, I’ve got to feed them, and so I’ve gotta get paid. Whether or not I have that rise to get up early in the morning, I’m still going to do it, because I’ve got to put food on the table.
