Jorge Masvidal captured the UFC BMF Championship on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden by defeating Nate Diaz via stoppage after the third round at UFC 244. This was a controversial ending to the fight, as the cageside doctor ended the bout because of an open cut on Diaz’s face. The fight marked the only time the custom championship will be defended, as it was created specifically for the rivalry between the two fighters, though they both expressed a desire to run it back for another bout after the controversial ending. Masvidal, an MMA veteran with a whopping 48 professional fights, made headlines back in July when he set the record for fastest knockout in UFC history by beating Ben Askren in six seconds with a flying knee at UFC 239. The win caught the attention of Diaz, who called out Masvidal in August at the UFC 241 event by claiming to be “the baddest motherf—er in the game.”
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UFC President Dana White ran with that as part of the fight’s promotion, and opted to create a specialty championship to crown the “baddest motherf—er” in the company.
Masvidal entered the fight as the favorite by Las Vegas oddsmakers, with a line of -160 to Diaz’s +140.
Leading up to the fight, Diaz explained what it meant to be the “baddest motherf—er” in an interview with MMA Fighting.
“We used to watch, me and my brother [fellow UFC fighter Nick Diaz], just as kids, they’ll being showing me Royce Gracie taking out everybody in UFC,” Diaz said. “And we’re like this is the baddest motherf—er right here. This is the baddest motherf—er.
“I mean, Mike Tyson whipping everybody’s ass all over the place for years. And if somebody says, who’s the best boxer? Like Mike Tyson is the baddest motherf—er. And then you have Rickson Gracie doing his thing in Japan, and (he’s) the best one in the family. And then somebody’s like, who is this? Like, that’s the baddest motherf—er right there. That’s the best fighter there is. Pound-for-pound, GOAT (greatest of all time) type of sh—.”
Masvidal explained during a media conference call earlier in the week why it took him so long to reach main-event status within the UFC, despite being the company since 2013.
“I think it just comes down to we both fight and we’re dogs in that cage, but at the same time, we see the bullsh—, and we don’t play in the bulls—,” Masvidal said. “You’re not going to tell me jump, or wear a suit, or do this. I’m going to do what the f— I feel like, and when I want to do it. It’s part of the reason it’s taken me so long to get the UFC to truly get behind me.
Cover photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
