From a certain perspective, Jorge Masvidal vs. Conor McGregor makes a whole lot of sense.
Despite their star power, neither man is in a particularly great position in their respective title hunts. After all, Masvidal was held down then pummeled in consecutive bouts vs. Kamaru Usman, ending up on the absolute wrong side of a highlight reel knockout. McGregor can relate to coming up short in two straight fights, as Dustin Poirier first knocked him out then shattered his ankle, leaving him ranting on the sidelines. In short, the Welterweight and Lightweight titles seem safe from the two stars, at least for the moment.
So, with each man at least somewhat eliminated from their division’s respective title hunt, why not pit the superstars against one another? It surely sounds like a recipe for seven figures worth of pay-per-view (PPV) buys. Despite the potentially lucrative nature of the match up, Jorge Masvidal’s manager took to Twitter to deny that the fight is ever going to happen.
Guys, stop this. Masvidal is too big for him, that’s why @danawhite never liked this fight. https://t.co/NbEBODng7a
— malki kawa (@malkikawa) July 29, 2021
“Guys, stop this,” Kawa tweeted. “Masvidal is too big for him, that’s why @danawhite never liked this fight.”
UFC President Dana White has in fact expressed a notable lack of interest in the match up, but he did soften his stance following McGregor’s knockout win over Donald Cerrone at 170 lbs. Still, with White seemingly set on eventually making Poirier vs. McGregor 4 once the Irish athlete is able to walk without a limp, perhaps it makes sense to leave this match up on the backburner.
As for Masvidal, his next move is unclear. There is definite hype behind potential Masvidal match ups vs. top contenders like Colby Covington and Leon Edwards, but “Gamebred” may chase an easier paycheck by targeting a Diaz brother instead.