While most fighters have a background in wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Muay Thai, Jorge Masvidal’s is less usual. He did a little high school wrestling, but he first came to attention in Kimbo Slice’s backyard bare knuckle fights, the skills for which he picked up in street fights and at Florida’s famed Freestyle Fighting Academy.
Gamebred, now 32, started fighting professionally in 2003 and has a record 32-11. He’s at a point in his career where very nearly every fighter has had his measure taken. However, after going just 1-3 from 2015-2016, Masvidal has seen a huge turnaround, winning his last three in a row, over Ross Pearson, Jake Ellenberger, and on Saturday night in front of a network television audience, over Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone.
The fight ended twice, the first time controversially. At the end of Round 1 referee Herb Dean pulled Masvidal off a crumbling Cerrone and the fight appeared to be over. However, the horn closing the round sounded moments after the stoppage and amidst the din of a main card fight ending, Dean allowed the fight to continue.
Usually, damage to the body is cumulative while the effect of head shots passes relatively quickly. However, the Cowboy at the start of Round 2 was radically diminished, and it ended shortly thereafter.
At the post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White explained what happened.
I picked up the phone and called [production] and said, ‘Was that correct? Was it the end of the round?’ explained White, as transcribed by MMAjunkie. It wasn’t. It wasn’t the end of the round. He stopped it early. But, to defend Herb Dean, it was so loud in that arena that I didn’t hear it either. Maybe you guys heard it – you’re sitting closer to it, but I didn’t hear it. … It is what it is. Mistakes are going to happen.
For Cerrone, the fight was likely a tremendous disappointment. After failing in a title challenge at lightweight, Cerrone moved up to 170 and had four fights in 2016, winning them all, all inside the distance, with three of them earning a Performance of the Night bonus. But he took the fight with Masvidal just six weeks after his last fight, and at 33 is not a kid.
“I hate when Cowboy does this,” said White as transcribed by MMA Fighting. “You know, he’s got four wins at welterweight and he wants to fight back-to-back like this, but that’s who this kid is. That’s what he wants to do, it is what it is.”
Masvidal stayed calm throughout.
“Hats off to Cowboy for even getting up, because I looked right into his soul when he got up,” said Masvidal. “And he wasn’t there. And when he came out, he wasn’t there. So he’s a warrior.”
I wasn’t confused at all. Herb Dean pulled me back. Then I heard the bell. … You can see on TV the bell sounds, and he pulls me right after. I’m not complaining. I’ll take the double knockout. Not a lot of people get those in a night.
Sometimes I like to play with my food, said Masvidal as transcribed by MMAjunkie. I like to beat guys up. I like to torture guys. Sometimes I don’t pull the trigger; sometimes I drop dudes and I smile at them after I drop them. I do what I want in there – nobody tells me what to do or how to do it.
I felt like knocking him out because I wasn’t going to decision. Sometimes in the past, I’ve been on cruise control, kicking a guy’s ass so much that I’m like, ‘I don’t need to pull the trigger.’ But I can pull the trigger when it needs to be pulled.
Masvidal also offered a bet, again, to White.
My coaches know if it’s a big fight, I’m going to be at the gym, said Masvidal as transcribed by MMAjunkie. If they give me some pretender, or another actor, I don’t know, I might not take it. That’s why I told Dana, if you want me to fight, take me up on this bet: $200,000. You can’t find nobody in the welterweight division that can beat me. Nobody.
Coming over from Strikeforce, I never got those key matchups like a lot of guys did in my divisionIt’s taken this long that I’ve been in the UFC for me to get that key matchup. I don’t have time to wait. I got other things to do. I got to get the biggest fights I possibly can. I know $200,000 isn’t much to Dana, but to me, I’m a working man, and $200,000 is a lot. I was trying to tell him there’s nobody you can find that can beat me. I’m so confident I’ll put [up] $200,00 of my own money.
White never responded to the bet, but he offered the highest praise.
Now Masvidal? Never pulls the trigger, this kid,” said White. “Incredibly, super talented. If he fought all the time like he fights tonight, he’ll be a world champion.
