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Jorge Masvidal has become one of the most recognizable names in MMA today in just the past six months. “Gambred” had certainly commanded a following throughout the majority of his fighting career, but recent knockout wins over Ben Askren and Darren Till now have Masvidal fighting Nate Diaz at UFC 244 in New York City for the new “BMF” belt.
Not too shabby for a guy who had never headlined a UFC card until his recent finish over Till at UFC London back in March.
Now, with the MMA world at his fingertips, Masvidal has the opportunity to take his UFC stock to an entirely new level, derail the Diaz hype train, and close out the year with a “BMF” belt wrapped around his waist. If he does that then “Gamebred” may very well capture Fighter of the Year honors, too.
“This year is going to be a great year, next year is going to be even better,” Masvidal said during a recent appearance on ESPN’s SportsCenter.
Masvidal, who lost to Stephen Thompson at UFC 217 the last time he fought in New York, will turn 35 this November. That isn’t young by any stretch of the imagination, especially considering the veteran has been competing at the highest level for nearly nine years, but Masvidal still believes he has a lot of tread left on his tires.
“I got about four years left in me,” he stated.
That may seem like a long time for fight fans to see “Gamebred” compete inside of the cage, but with injuries, layoffs, losing streaks, and the potential of getting knocked out, we really don’t know what the future holds for any fighter, let alone a guy like Masvidal who throws caution to the wind every time he competes. That’s why “Gamebred” is taking things one fight at a time and looking to make his rise to stardom count.
What does that exactly mean for fight fans? Well, if Masvidal’s recent production is any indication of things to come then they can expect unfiltered violence and destruction.
“That’s all my mind has been on, is eliminating people off the planet earth,” said Masvidal.
Considering Diaz has only been finished once by strikes in his entire MMA career — which came at the hands of a Josh Thomson TKO back in 2013 — Masvidal is going to have his work cut out for him come UFC 244. But if “Gamebred” is able to stop the Stockton native in the main event then he’d be able to parlay that performance into a UFC welterweight title shot or lucrative showdown with the “Notorious” Conor McGregor.
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