Yahoo Sports ‘The stars are aligning’: Jorge Masvidal’s potential title run begins with UFC’s overdue return to Miami
It’s been long overdue, but Jorge Masvidal will finally get to fight at home.
The MMA star will co-headline the UFC’s return to Miami on April 8, as he’s set to take on top contender Gilbert Burns in a key welterweight bout. UFC 287, which is headlined by a championship rematch between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya, marks the first time the promotion will host an event down at the 305 in two decades. The famed Miami-Dade Arena, home of the Miami Heat, will host the card.
The last time Miami saw a UFC event was for UFC 42 back on April 25 in 2003. Welterweight champion Matt Hughes defended his belt against Sean Sherk in the main event. An 18-year-old Masvidal was present that night, but not as a UFC fighter, but as an aspiring fighter hopeful of one day reaching the pinnacle of the sport.
“It’s been 20 years since they last came, and in fact, the last time they were here, I was there at that show,” Masvidal told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “I was about to become pro and in love with the sport, knowing that one day I would compete in the UFC.”
Masvidal would go pro the following month after UFC 42, defeating Brandon Bledsoe by first-round knockout in a regional promotion in Fort Lauderdale.
Fast-forward 10 years, and “Gamebred” accomplished what he set out to do.
In 2013, Masvidal debuted for the UFC, defeating veteran Tim Means to improve his record to 24-7. Looking back, that card had plenty brewing. Then fairly unknown or underappreciated figures such Nate Diaz, T.J. Dillashaw, Yoel Romero, Chad Mendes and Joseph Benavidez all formed part of that UFC on FOX 7 lineup, but none made up the top billing of the event.
For the following decade, Masvidal fought everywhere, but his hometown – even after he rose to stardom in 2019. “Gamebred” sees UFC 287 as something special, as it easily could’ve not been a reality.
“Twenty years later, and now the UFC returns to my city, and it just so happens to be that I’m still fighting,” Masvidal explained. “I could’ve retired in many different occasions due to injuries, you know, all kinds of things that happen in this sport. So it’s like all the stars are aligning, and the universe is giving me this. It wants me to go through this. You’ll see the battle that I will give to my people.”
UFC 42 left a sour taste for the promotion. With a capacity of almost 20,000, the Miami-Dade arena only saw 6,700 fans turn up to watch the fights.
Because of that, Miami would never really be in contention for UFC events, and it was largely forgotten by the MMA industry. Even Masvidal, who’s always been proud of his roots, never really put much thought into campaigning for a UFC event at home until recent years.
“For a long time I was fighting in Japan, Russia, all over the world,” Masvidal said. “I didn’t know what it was like to fight in Miami, and that wasn’t something that called me too much. I just said that it’ll come whenever it needs to come.
“My home has always been out in the streets. It was Las Vegas, California, Ohio, all these other places. So for me, I was just used to traveling and fighting. I fly, go to a hotel, and all that before I fight. I was already used to that and living that way. It’s not that I didn’t wish this moment, I just didn’t think about it.
“But now, in the last four years, I started thinking, ‘I know I can sell out the stadium. Now is the time.’ I said let’s go to Miami, and we’re in Miami.”
The championship dream still lives:
UFC 287 is more than just the homecoming of one of the biggest stars of the sport. This event could also be the start of a final title run for Masvidal.
Many have discarded the possibility of Masvidal fighting for a UFC title again, and more so the idea of him becoming UFC champion.
After all, Masvidal is 38 years old, is currently on a three-fight losing streak, has already had two previous title fights in which he came up short against then-champion Kamaru Usman, and is also dealing with legal issues stemming from an alleged attack to rival Colby Covington in March 2022.
Oh, and he just happens to find himself in one of the toughest and most competitive divisions of the sport, which also has a long line of contenders.
Yet, despite the evidence playing against him, there is an alternate way of looking at things. And when taken into account, Masvidal fighting for the UFC belt once again in 2023 is not that far-fetched.
For starters, he is one of the biggest stars of the sport, and definitely the biggest currently active at 170 pounds. He’s fighting Burns at UFC 287, which is as legit of a win as anyone could possibly get in the division.
And last, but definitely not least, Masvidal has a long-standing feud with the champion Leon Edwards. Remember the whole “three-piece and a soda” thing? Yeah, that was Edwards who he pieced up in a viral video backstage at a UFC event in London back in 2019.
Although that may seem like an eternity at this point, Edwards hasn’t forgotten, and he intends on getting that one back one way or the other.
“I can’t let it go,” Edwards told the Breakfast Club this past November. “It’s not let go, and this happened three years ago. Yeah, it’s not let go, and I have to get it back in the octagon or in the street. It has to be got back.”
A rematch, from a street standpoint of view, is likely the biggest grudge match the UFC can make in 2023. You add that plus Masvidal’s stardom, and if victorious in his return against Burns, an undeniably legit win on a massive pay-per-view, and all of a sudden a championship bout between Edwards and Masvidal might just be super necessary.
“There’s a lot of factors that need to take place – but that’s the plan,” Masvidal said. “All the stars need to align again. I’d go to the U.K. again because I’d like to give him a beating in his own backyard. I’m going to take his head off, and that’s it. That’s what I envision every day.
“Why not have faith in something? I have a lot of faith. I have a lot of knowledge on Gilbert and Leon. If you ask me, I beat both.”
Of course, defeating Burns is no easy task. Only Usman and Khamzat Chimaev have been able to do so ever since Burns moved up to welterweight.
Masvidal has a big mountain to climb, no doubt, but given his striking, experience, and the magic of the 4 oz gloves – you can’t count out the 305 native.
The other side of the equation:
Masvidal has plenty to deal with in terms of his end of the deal. But there’s a key part of the title dreams that’s completely out of his hands.
Edwards has his first championship defense booked for next month’s UFC 286 in London, England. He takes on Usman in a trilogy bout. Masvidal’s chances of fighting for a UFC belt depend heavily on the Englishman keeping his belt, as he’s already 0-2 against Usman – losing once by decision and the other by KO.
Although Edwards is the champion, he did enter the rematch against Usman last August as a big underdog. And to be fair, he was getting beat by a lot before that wild comeback, head-kick KO late in the fifth round connected.
Selfishly, Masvidal hopes Edwards retains his title, but if he’s being honest, he’s not all that sure what to expect for that clash.
“You don’t know how someone will return after a knockout that severe,” Masvidal said regarding Usman’s chances of getting back the welterweight title. “Psychologically, physically, you don’t know how he will be until he gets in there and shows if he still has that heart of a champion or not.
“I don’t know what to think of this fight. As I told you, (Usman) is coming off a bad knockout, and that can change a fighter a lot mentally. He might return with a lot of fears and not want to exchange, and maybe gases himself out because all he does is wrestle. So I don’t know what to think of that fight because it’s hard to return after a knockout like that.”
It’s not over:
From fighting bareknuckle in random backyards of Miami to now co-headlining a giant UFC pay-per-view in the city’s most prestigious arena, Masvidal has already defied the odds.
But it’s not over, he’ll get another chance to do it again on April 8 at UFC 287 when he squares off against Burns. And whether you like it or not, “Gamebred” is still a live dog in this fight for gold. Let’s not forget that 2019 when Masvidal went from being an underappreciated and overlooked veteran to the center of attention of the entire MMA world.
There’s no denying that the odds are stacked against him here, but that’s been the entire story of his career. Masvidal’s return to the octagon in Miami is an important one, as it’s not only a homecoming, but likely his last real chance at another run for the UFC belt.
“I’m upset with myself that I’m not bringing the event to my city with me being the main event, holding the UFC belt around my waist,” Masvidal said. “That was very possible because I had the chances, and it’s still possible. So on that end, it’s a double edge sword. I love that I brought the event to Miami, but I would’ve loved to be the main event for my Latinos. But that’s ok, this is just a step to an even bigger step. I’m going in the right direction to where I want to be in 2023.”
