Jorge Masvidal will find it difficult to turn down a world title shot if Leon Edwards beats Kamaru Usman in August, even after three consecutive losses.
Masvidal, 37, is one of the UFC's most well-known stars but lost his last three fights, including two title efforts against Usman. He has hardly won a round since his star-making year in 2019, when he knocked out Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz on a tear to the top of the welterweight division.
He was given a short-notice shot at Usman's belt when Gilbert Burns pulled out of their scheduled 2020 fight and then rematched the Nigerian with a full camp the following April. He was dominated for five rounds first time out before being flattened in their second bout.
In another blow, Masvidal was completely dominated by arch-nemesis Covington back in March. Weeks later, there was an alleged altercation between the pair in Miami that saw him arrested and he is now facing charges.
"I gotta say no to fighting for the title? Like, hell no," Masvidal said when asked about Edwards 'intangible' offer during an interview with BLOCK ASSET. "I’ll get my a** in shape and get ready for this f***ing hooligan, give it all I got to break his face.
"So it’s a lot of tangibles. There are lot of things that can happen out there. I could be getting myself ready for No. 10 of the world and all of a sudden, I’m fighting for a world championship.
"So what I’m telling you is that I don’t even know what I’m going to do with myself. I’m unpredictable like that, you know? I’m gonna go with the best options all the time."
Edwards and Masvidal had an infamous backstage scrap after UFC London in March 2019 after their respective wins over Gunnar Nelson and Till. During a post-fight media scrum, Edwards was approached by Masvidal, who proceeded to punch him, opening up a cut on his rival's face.
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And should he defeat Usman in his challenge for the welterweight belt this August, Edwards has promised to give Masvidal a title shot. They were scheduled to fight in December before Masvidal pulled out with an injury - and the bad blood between them is as fresh as ever.
"When I win the belt, I’ll give him the title shot," Edwards said during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour. "That would be a fantastic fight in the UK. Bring it back to the O2 [Arena], where it [the altercation] happened, for the title. That’s the one to do next, that’s the best.
"I'll offer it to him, if that happens in the UK, sure. My dream scenario would be to bring it back to London and to headline London. So I want to come back home and then do it."
