Retirement is something that every athlete, combat sports or otherwise, needs to consider at some point. Whilst some fighters plan to retire after achieving a specific goal, there are others who may have something different in mind. As such, Jorge Masvidal has some plans of his own.
In episode #137 of JRE MMA Show, Joe Rogan, and Masvidal discussed some topics. Among them was the topic of retirement for Masvidal, who is now 38 years old and is currently sitting #11 in the welterweight rankings. Speaking on the matter, Jorge had a very open and honest response for the podcaster.
View this post on Instagram
“Once I can’t keep up with the pack no more, I know my time has come. And it’s going to hurt like f**k, because this is all I’ve known. This is my first, my last love. This is my everything.” Jorge continues, “Once the gym is telling me like hey, you know, your time has come, I’m cool with it, you know. I just f**king gracefully bow out.” According to Jorge, his performance in the gym will let him know when it’s time to hang up the gloves.
For the most part, Jorge does not want to step inside the cage and punish his body further to find out his time is up. As per Gamebred, there are many new fighters in his gym, and if he is unable to contend with them, Jorge will consider retiring. For the most part, Jorge refuses to be a gatekeeper and be beaten by an up-and-coming fighter in the division.
Jorge Masvidal Career Achievements
For many, the ‘King of Miami’ will always be one of their favorite fighters. Always bringing a gritty, and mischievous demeanor, Masvidal carries himself with a certain swagger. Fighting in the UFC since 2013, Jorge has entertained fans throughout his time in the promotion, although his 35-16 record makes for poor reading.
However, Masvidal has undeniably had some iconic moments whilst fighting in the UFC. For starters, his 5-second flying knee finish of Ben Askren will forever remain in the UFC record books. Similarly, one simply cannot forget his brutal decimation of Nate Diaz at UFC 244 to be crowned the BMF champion. Lastly, Masvidal also put up an admirable effort against Kamaru Usman at UFC 251, when he stepped in to fight the champ on short notice.
As such, the full list of Gamebred’s achievements also includes 3 “Fight of the Night” bonuses against Rustam Khabilov, Colby Covington, and Darren Till as well. In addition to that Jorge also has 4 “Performance of the Night” bonuses against Cezar Ferreira, Donald Cerrone, Darren Till, and Ben Askren to his name. Lastly, his flying knee KO of Ben Askren is the fastest finish to a UFC fight ever. The same KO was awarded the UFC 2019 Knockout of the Year as well.
Currently, Masvidal is gearing up to take on Gilbert Burns at UFC 287. Due to his unmatched star power, a win would put Jorge back in contention for the title. Most likely it would set him up for a possible showdown against either Colby Covington or Leon Edwards, with both of whom he has a history.