MIAMI – UFC president Dana White fully supports Jorge Masvidal’s decision to retire after UFC 287.
Masvidal (35-17 MMA, 12-10 UFC) announced his time as an active competitor was over after his losing skid hit four consecutive fights on Saturday with a unanimous decision against Gilbert Burns in front of his hometown crowd at Kaseya Center.
Prior to the fight, Masvidal, 38, said if things didn’t go his way, he would likely hang up the gloves. It panned out that way, and given where “Gamebred” is at in his career, White agreed with the timing.
“As soon as you think about retiring, you should in this business,” White told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at the UFC 287 post-fight news conference. “He’s made a lot of money. He made a lot of money tonight. He’s got a lot of things going on outside the octagon too, like Conor (McGregor) does and some of these other guys. I think he’s proved everything he needed to prove to himself and changed his family’s life, and why not?”
Masvidal goes out as one of the most popular fighters in the UFC over the past several years. After spending nearly a decade in the promotion with mediocre success, Masvidal changed the trajectory of his career in 2019 when he finished Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz.
The flying-knee finish over Askren in particular, which set the record for the fastest knockout in UFC history at five seconds, turned Masvidal into an instant star. He couldn’t capitalize and capture the welterweight title in two subsequent tries, but White said Masvidal is the perfect example of someone who maximized a moment.
“That flying knee changed his life,” White said. “When he threw that flying, knee it changed his whole life.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.
