Jorge Masvidal is out to prove a point with his Nate Diaz rematch.
“I want to murder this guy,” Masvidal said Wednesday on The MMA Hour. “And it’s nothing personal with him, but I want to beat the f****** brakes off him. He always said that the referee saved me. I don’t think anybody with common sense would agree. So I think this fight right here puts an end to all that bulls***.”
Masvidal, 39, and Diaz, 38, are set to meet in a 10-round, 175-pound professional boxing match on June 1 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles. The duo previously fought in November 2019 at UFC 244, with Masvidal defeating Diaz via third-round TKO to claim the promotion’s inaugural BMF belt after a cageside doctor halted the contest due to cuts. MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani broke news of the rematch on Wednesday’s episode of The MMA Hour.
Masvidal and Diaz have both competed once before in professional boxing. The former earned a majority decision victory over Joseph Benjamin back in 2005, while the latter made his in-ring debut in a August 2023 decision loss to Jake Paul. Masvidal retired from combat sports this past April following a loss to Gilbert Burns at UFC 287, but now returns to boxing following a near 19-year hiatus from the sport. The bout will be carried on pay-per-view by Fanmio for $79.99, with an early price of $49.99 available until April 12.
“I’m going to be in the best shape of my life,” Masvidal said. “I know he’s going to be in the best shape of his life — it’s not like he’s fighting Jake Paul and he’s coming up off the couch. He knows that if he’s not in shape, I’m going to make him look bad and I’ll get him out of there in two rounds. He knows with me you’ve got to die every day in the gym to maybe step in that ring and have a fighting chance.
“Because I don’t play that s***, man. I’m trying to kill this motherf*****, and he knows it personally. He has the scars to prove it. He sees them things every day in the mirror when he looks at it and knows, ‘This guy is going to try to f****** kill me, bro.’ So Nate, get your ass in shape because I’m coming to break your f****** face, brother.”
Masvidal remains under UFC contract but received clearance from the promotion to box Diaz. “Gamebred” said he has been preparing for his return to the sweet science for the past seven or eight weeks in Las Vegas and intends to complete the rest of his camp there. The switch between disciplines has been motivating, he said, and he aims to prove once again that he is the superior and meaner fighter between the two UFC veterans.
“I feel great, I’m in a great place right now. This deal has been amazing for many reasons, and it’s also allowed me to f****** be able to just completely and utterly focus on my training and nothing else,” Masvidal said.
“I’m going to hurt this guy, man.”
Source : MMAFighting