Masvidal Just Set His Retirement Date

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Kamaru Usman captured the UFC welterweight title back on March 2, thanks to a dominant performance against ex-champion, Tyron Woodley, at the UFC 235 pay-per-view (PPV) event in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jorge Masvidal wasn’t even ranked in the Top 10.

Then “Gamebred” turned the division on its head with three straight finishes over some of the top names in the sport. After highlight-reel stoppages against Darren Till and Ben Askren, Masvidal (35-13) filleted Nate Diaz for the “BMF” belt.

Good enough to earn him the No. 3 spot at welterweight.

“Before I close the next chapter and go on to whatever the fuck in my life, I’m gonna get that belt and whoever has it, I’m gonna take their head off,” Masvidal told MMAmania.com. “Then I’m gonna defend that belt and I’m gonna kick whoever they put in front of me’s ass. I’m gonna separate myself from the pack by eliminating people by having somebody stop me from doing further damage.”

Usman will make his first title defense in the UFC 245 main event, taking on Colby Covington this Sat. night (Dec. 14, 2019) inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “Gamebred” could very easily fight the winner … unless the promotion has something bigger (and more profitable) in mind.

“I got about three years left, then I’ll hang up the gloves comfortably,” Masvidal said. “Not because I need to, but because I want to. I’ll have enough money and everything I wanted to accomplish in these three years. It’s more of a matter of who’s going to bring me the most money in this next fight.”

Outside of Conor McGregor, I’m not sure there’s a bigger fight for Masvidal, 35, than the winner of Usman-Covington, as it’s likely to guarantee him a PPV main event at some point in 2020, along with all the perks that come with it.

Then again, with three years left, there’s plenty of time for both.