Jorge Masvidal felt rewarded for competing in a fight against Kamaru Usman less than a week later.
Masvidal faced then-UFC welterweight champion Usman in the main event of UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi on just six days' notice in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Masvidal replaced Gilbert Burns, who was sidelined after contracting the coronavirus.
Considering Masvidal said he earned $16,000 for his 2011 Strikeforce lightweight title fight, earning millions against Usman was fulfilling even though he lost. .
“We ended up with just under 1.3 million pay-per-view sales,” Masvidal said in an interview with VladTV. “If I hadn't signed that contract with the UFC, I wouldn't have even gotten close to $5 million. Even if I had sold the same amount, I wouldn't have gotten anywhere near $5 million. And I felt like I was taken advantage of. Part of me, the business side of me, the professional boxer in me, was very, very content and happy for my kids, for myself, for my family, but I always wanted that world title belt. The guy who was there wasn’t like that, you know?”
Masvidal was looking to become Usman's original title challenger at UFC 251, but due to his increased demands, the promotion offered the challenge to Burns instead. However, after Mr. Burns withdrew, Mr. Masvidal was contacted and his financial demands were eventually met.
“Give me more money in pay-per-views that I bring, not in salaries,” Masvidal said. “If I sell $100 million on pay-per-view, I want a much bigger share than what you guys are offering me. And that (negotiations) stops. We can't do that. So they went their separate ways, and six days before the fight, they got infected with coronavirus on another road together. And now, the UFC has told me. I get a call and they need someone who can fill in with six days' notice.
“Fly around the world, lose 20 pounds in 6 days, and fight for a world title. There's only one motherfucker in the world who can take the call of the Bat Signal, and that's here.” This guy. But I had to pay, and I had to pay a very high fee to do this. So they accepted all my requests. I got what I wanted when it came to that, so I did it like a bandit.”
Less than a year later, Masvidal got a chance to fight back against Usman at UFC 261, but he was eliminated in the second round.
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