Former UFC heavyweight champion-turned MMA analyst Daniel Cormier previously had a problem with Jorge Masvidal getting “unlimited title fights” after coming up short in two separate attempts to dethrone then-welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Those comments led to some ugly name calling from Team Masvidal but “DC” made no apologies for his position.
Read those comments here.
So what changed? The welterweight champion, thanks to consecutive title victories for Leon Edwards. In addition, Masvidal will have an opportunity to slug his way back into the win column against Top 5 contender and former title challenger Gilbert Burns in the UFC 287 pay-per-view (PPV) co-main event, scheduled for Sat., April 8, 2023 at Miami-Dade Arena in Miami, Florida.
“He pretty much called out everybody in the welterweight division,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel (transcribed by Farah Hannoun). “It’s a great opportunity for Masvidal, and you can see in his behavior, you can see in his approach, that Masvidal recognizes it. While he has been on a bit of a slump in fighting, he’s done a lot of things positively to help his career in terms of media, getting Gamebred Boxing going and everything else. Why’s he talking about all these guys? Because he’s a lightning rod, and he understands that.”
Masvidal, 38, is looking to snap a three-fight losing streak. After falling to Usman at UFC 251 and UFC 261, “Gamebred” dropped a five-round unanimous decision to bitter rival Colby Covington at UFC 272, a feud that continued in the streets of Miami — and the “Sunshine State” courts — after a steakhouse sneak attack that left “Chaos” bloodied and broken (and back in title contention).
“If you’re in Miami [for UFC 287], it’s going to be a pro-Masvidal crowd,” Cormier continued. “He wins, gets in the middle of the Octagon, and tells Joe Rogan, ‘I want Leon Edwards. Come get this biscuit, come get this two-piece.’ Dude, the world’s going to go crazy and Dana will look at that and go, ‘Hey, man – there’s a lot of history to that.’ (If) this guy wins impressively, with his star power, I could see him right in the conversation for a fight against Leon Edwards.”
Masvidal (35-16) has a history with Edwards thanks to their backstage beef at UFC Fight Night 47 in London, one that “Rocky” hasn’t forgotten and vows to avenge once the promotion issues him the green light. There’s a chance their business remains unfinished because it requires victories for both Masvidal and Edwards, who are paired off with two very tough opponent for their next respective outings.
We’ll have the first part of our answer next week in Miami