Tag: Jorge Masivdal

Kamaru Usman Believes Jorge Masvidal & Colby Covington May Underestimate Eachother At UFC 272

Kamaru UsmanKamaru Usman feels that his former foes and UFC 272 headliners Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington potentially could be overlooking one another. If there’s one man who knows Masvidal and Covington, it’s the current UFC welterweight. Usman, having bested both men, twice, would have a unique perspective on this weekend’s main event in Las Vegas. […]

Kamaru Usman

Kamaru Usman feels that his former foes and UFC 272 headliners Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington potentially could be overlooking one another.

If there’s one man who knows Masvidal and Covington, it’s the current UFC welterweight. Usman, having bested both men, twice, would have a unique perspective on this weekend’s main event in Las Vegas.

Years in the making, we will finally see the grudge match of friends turned enemies, in what has turned out to be one of the UFC’s biggest rivalries. Covington and Masvidal spent years training together at American Top Team, sparring and drilling for countless rounds with one another.

This relationship and familiarity with one another is what Usman feels could be the downfall of both men

“In this fight, Colby’s going to realize that it’s harder to take Masvidal down in an actual fight than when they were in practice,” Usman explained to ESPN. “I know in his mind he’s going to expect it to be like it was when they practiced but they spent some time apart and I think he’s going to realize it’s a lot harder to take him down in a fight than it is from practice.

“Masvidal, on the flip side, I think he’s going to realize that it’s a lot harder to strike with this guy now than back when ‘I was beating him up when he first came into the sport.’”

Kamaru Usman Discusses The Mind Games Of Covington Vs. Masvidal

Neither Masvidal nor Covington are known for holding their tongues about their opponents but their genuine hatred for one another has seen it go to another level. Insults and threats have been thrown back and forth for months the animosity seems to be building as the fight but Usman feels these mind games could affect the outcome.

“I believe that whoever can keep their ego in check is who’s going to have the slight edge.” Usman said when talking to Megan Olivi but we can already see how it’s playing out here and who’s kinda getting the better of who.”

“Tell me Kamaru, who?” Olivi quickly replied.

“Ah, it’s very tough,” Usman replied, “like I said I’m kinda a fan of both guys like I’m a fan of a lot of guys in the UFC. I wanna say Colby is kind of, because, with Covington, there is no line. He’s willing to step all on that line and around it and over it and maybe pee on the line he’s willing to do all that to potentially get that reaction.” (Transcribed by MMA Junkie)

Do you agree with Kamaru Usman? could Covington and Masvidal overlook each other?

Stephen Thompson Would ‘Love’ To Rematch Jorge Masvidal

Stephen ThompsonStephen Thompson is hoping to secure a high-profile rematch with Jorge Masvidal. The two welterweight contenders previously faced off at UFC 217 with ‘Wonderboy’ emerging victorious via split decision. Masvidal spoke about his goal to rematch Thompson before his late-notice fight against the welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman at UFC 251. ‘Gamebred’ dropped to a decision […]

Stephen Thompson

Stephen Thompson is hoping to secure a high-profile rematch with Jorge Masvidal. The two welterweight contenders previously faced off at UFC 217 with ‘Wonderboy’ emerging victorious via split decision.

Masvidal spoke about his goal to rematch Thompson before his late-notice fight against the welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman at UFC 251. ‘Gamebred’ dropped to a decision loss in his UFC title bout on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi which potentially brings a rematch ‘Wonderboy’ closer than ever.

Speaking to James Lynch for Line Movement Thompson revealed he is hoping to return to the cage sooner rather than later to face one of the top-ranked guys at 170lbs, he said.

“Man, hopefully sometime soon, August, September would be preferable. But, like you said, at the moment, who do I face? I just fought the No. 12 guy, well he was, Vicente Luque, I don’t know where he is right now but I know he has a fight coming up. I’m always looking for the title, I want to move forward. Colby Covington, Leon Edwards, even Masvidal I wouldn’t mind, even though he doesn’t have the title, I would love to face up Masvidal again. It will help me out moving up in the rankings for sure. So, anyone of those guys I mentioned would be awesome.”

‘Wonderboy’ recognizes Masvidal would present a much tougher task second time round. The 35-year-old respects ‘Street Jesus’ has changed up his training routine and is riding high after a series of big wins.

“Oh, 100 percent I think he will be a different animal for sure,” Thompson said. “His confidence level is through the roof and that can go a long way. Not just that but his training routine, his mindset is different than it was before.” (Transcribed by BJPENN.com)

Who do you think will win if Stephen Thompson and Jorge Masvidal rematch?

Firas Zahabi Predicts Jorge Masvidal To Beat Conor McGregor

Firas Zahabi believes Conor McGregor is the best puncher in the UFC — however, he still sees Jorge Masvidal beating him if they were to fight. Masvidal’s stock has exponentially risen in 2019 following emphatic victories over Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz. There is now talk of him facing McGregor next with the […]

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Firas Zahabi believes Conor McGregor is the best puncher in the UFC — however, he still sees Jorge Masvidal beating him if they were to fight.

Masvidal’s stock has exponentially risen in 2019 following emphatic victories over Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz. There is now talk of him facing McGregor next with the two going back-and-forth ever since UFC 244 this past weekend.

Participating in a recent AMA session on YouTube, Zahabi — head coach of Tristar Gym — praised the Irishman’s skills but ultimately believes there are some bad matchups out there for him with Masvidal being one of them:

“I honestly would tell you that probably McGregor is the best puncher in the UFC,” Zahabi said on his YouTube channel (via Bloody Elbow). “If I had to choose one guy off the top of my head, I would pick McGregor right now. However, there are guys out there who are very dangerous punchers, and I would say Jorge is among the elite.

“I think (Masvidal) beats McGregor. I think McGregor is a great fighter. I just think Masvidal is too big. He’s a great puncher and has a great chin. If he takes McGregor past the two rounds, it’s going to be the Masvidal show.”

It’s an opinion that many seem to share now, especially given how Masvidal was able to dominate Diaz with relative ease for as long as their UFC 244 headliner lasted.

He’s not completely ruling out McGregor’s chances. However, he still sees it going the way of “Gamebred”:

“I think he’s [Masvidal] very smart. He’s gonna do it,” Zahabi added. “I’m not saying McGregor has no chance of winning, but he’d have to win early and he’d have to connect with the left — and everybody kind of knows now what McGregor does. I think Masvidal’s gonna have a really good game plan, come really prepared, and he’s a lot bigger.

“If McGregor had a hard time with Nate, he’s going to have a tremendously difficult time with Masvidal.”

Do you agree with Zahabi’s view?

 

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Jorge Masvidal Responds To Leon Edwards’ UFC Singapore Callout

This fight makes sense for both talented welterweights.

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Jorge Masvidal is ready to get back into the Octagon.

“Gamebred” is on a two-fight losing skid after back-to-back decision losses against Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson. Despite his recent struggles, Masvidal is still one of the better known fighters in the UFC’s 170-pound division.

Yesterday morning (Sat. June 23, 2018) rising prospect Leon Edwards picked up the biggest win of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career when he defeated Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone via unanimous decision. Shortly after the victory, Edwards called out Masvidal to a future Octagon meeting.

In an interview with MMA Junkie, Masvidal seems more than willing to share the cage with the Englishman next:

“(Expletive) people are always calling me out,” Masvidal said. “I don’t give two (expletive) who calls me out. I just want a big fight. If Leon is the biggest fight that I can get my hands on, meaning the biggest name and biggest ranking, then that’s who it is.”

Masvidal would much rather take on a top-10 opponent next, but everyone is either matched up or not ready to fight yet. If Edwards is the fight presently available to Masvidal then he’s ready to take it:

“It doesn’t really matter, because everybody seems to be matched up and locked up. So maybe it’s Leon Edwards, and maybe it’s not. It depends on the timing. The bigger the names, the better,” Masvidal said.

“At this stage in my career, I only want top-10 guys, or the closest thing to get me to the title. I don’t think Leon Edwards is quite there, but it’s a fight, and it’s competition. The guy’s obviously skilled and on a big win streak, so it would be awesome to get the fight.

“I don’t see (Neil) Magny, No. 7 or whatever the (expletive) (expletive) ranking he has behind him, I don’t see him stepping in any time soon, so I’m not going to keep waiting for fantasy matchups that are never going to happen. So if it’s Leon Edwards, Leon Edwards it is.”

Masvidal is ready to fight as soon as September. He was recently disappointed after receiving news that several fighters didn’t want to fight. A call from the UFC offering him an opponent would be a nice change:

“I won’t even mention their names in this interview, because I don’t want to give them any type of attention or name recognition,” Masvidal said. “But there were a couple of guys that I asked for, and the UFC said, ‘Hell, no. We can’t give you those guys. You’re going to murder those guys.’

“(Darren) Till is waiting for a title shot. Rafael dos Anjos might be fighting (Kamaru) Usman, and Usman thinks he deserves a title shot, as well. Magny’s just a (expletive). (Demian) Maia doesn’t seem like he wants to fight anymore; I was trying to get a rematch with him or (Stephen) Thompson, and Thompson’s hurt.

“Santiago Ponzinibbio’s also hurt, but he’s also my teammate, so I’m not trying to fight the guy. All the other top-10 guys are locked up. So whoever I can get my hands on, let’s go.”

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada USA Today Sports

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Top Welterweights Engage In All-Out Twitter War Of Accusations

The welterweight division is an absolute shark tank these days, with numerous worthy contenders angling for a shot at Tyron Woodley’s belt. Three of those welterweight contenders went to war on Twitter on Wednesday after an inflammatory tweet from Kamaru Usman’s manager, with Usman exchanging barbs with Darren Till and Jorge Masvidal. Check out their […]

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The welterweight division is an absolute shark tank these days, with numerous worthy contenders angling for a shot at Tyron Woodley’s belt.

Three of those welterweight contenders went to war on Twitter on Wednesday after an inflammatory tweet from Kamaru Usman’s manager, with Usman exchanging barbs with Darren Till and Jorge Masvidal.

Check out their war of words for yourself!

Usman and Till went back and forth for a while before Masvidal jumped into the fray upon seeing Ali’s tweet suggesting “Gamebread” had turned down a fight with Usman. Naturally, he didn’t hold back in classic Masvidal fashion.

Masvidal’s manager, Ibrahim Kawa, weighed in on the matter too, claiming that Masvidal was never offered Usman, despite Ali’s tweet.

With Usman undefeated in seven UFC appearances, the Nigerian-American has had trouble finding an opponent as of late. Till too has had issues getting a fight; the Englishman is currently slated to headline UFC Liverpool in May, however he does not have an opponent yet.

Do you agree with Usman’s manager that other fighters are ducking “The Nigerian Nightmare”? Who came out on top of this Twitter battle?

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Rumor: Tyron Woodley Returns Against Masvidal, Not Maia

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is rumored to be defending his belt at UFC 215, but not against conensus number one contender Demian Maia. Sources close to Woodley’s camp say that Woodley will be defending his welterweight title against Jorge Masvidal, who just recently lost a close decision to Maia at May’s UFC 211 from […]

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UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is rumored to be defending his belt at UFC 215, but not against conensus number one contender Demian Maia.

Sources close to Woodley’s camp say that Woodley will be defending his welterweight title against Jorge Masvidal, who just recently lost a close decision to Maia at May’s UFC 211 from Dallas, Texas.

Before the close loss to Maia, Masvidal had rattled off a three-fight win streak culminating in a TKO victory over Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone at UFC on FOX 23 earlier this year. “Gamebred” is a former American Top Team (ATT) teammate of the champion’s, but obviously Woodley has little problem with booking the fight.

There’s been no official word yet on if Maia wasn’t offered the champ, but the rumor is that Maia is apparently injured. If he were found to be healthy, it’d be incredibly tough to deny him a long-deserved title shot considering the Brazilian is on an incredible seven-fight win streak. Sources say Woodley has been offered Masvidal at UFC 215 instead, but nothing official has been confirmed as of yet.

Woodley won the belt by knocking out former champ Robbie Lawler in the first round back at UFC 201. Since winning the belt, Woodley had a draw against Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson at last year’s UFC 205 before defeating him by decision in their rematch at March’s UFC 209, and has since called out for so-called “money fights” with Nick Diaz, Georges St-Pierre, and Michael Bisping.

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