Jorge Masvidal believes fighting in Nate Diaz’s home state worked against him in their boxing match on Saturday night.
In what turned out to be a surprisingly entertaining 10-round war, Masvidal lost a majority decision, with one judge scoring the fight a draw while the other two officials gave Diaz the nod in overwhelming fashion. One scorecard totaled out at 97-93 and the other was 98-92, which was more than enough to give Diaz the win.
Obviously, Masvidal disagreed, especially given the stats that showed he out-landed Diaz in total punches, not to mention power punches over the course of the fight.
“I definitely know the judges were influenced by the crowd,” Masvidal said at the post-fight press conference. “Because a lot of those shots were landing in the corner, I was just getting my timing, he’d throw three or four shots that wouldn’t land and then I’d throw a good power shot. I’d see that I’d hurt him and I’d back him up or he would start goofing around. Hurt him to the body numerous times.
“I think one or two of the judges only gave me two rounds. There’s just no way. We were looking at the fight right now in the locker room, the meaningful shots, and a lot more of the meaningful shots were landed by me. I just feel that it didn’t go my way, but whatever. We’re 1-1, we can run it back some place like Vegas. Make it a neutral place and let’s f*cking throw down.”
While he didn’t have the time to re-watch the entire fight, Masvidal saw enough footage to know he hit Diaz with the much bigger and more impactful shots in the bout. What Masvidal believes hurt him, however, was the crowd roaring every single time Diaz threw a punch — whether he connected or not — and that could have played a part in what the judges were seeing.
Perhaps Masvidal’s biggest problem with the scorecards weren’t that he lost, but rather that the two judges that gave Diaz the fight had Masvidal losing in rather lopsided fashion.
“From what I saw, I definitely hurt him more than he ever hurt me,” Masvidal said. “I got way cleaner shots, especially to the body. He never even did anything to my body. I definitely hurt his body, and a couple times that I hurt him, he backed up. He put a lot of pressure and he was coming forward but he never hurt me. I don’t think he landed any meaningful punches.
“Eight rounds to two is f*cking nuts. Whatever, it’s California. I knew I had to get a knockout or some shit like this.”
As disappointed as he was with the result, Masvidal still managed to pull off a rare feat by co-promoting a massive card alongside Diaz that sold out the Honda Center in Anaheim. That may have added a few more responsibilities to his daily routine than when he was competing in UFC, but Masvidal knows it was all worth it in the end.
“I know no matter what, we put on a great fight,” Masvidal said. “The shit people are saying online, everybody’s loving it, so I know it was a great fight, win or lose. Obviously, win first over everything, but entertaining the crowd is another big part of it, so I’m glad we got to entertain everybody and we could probably sell out another arena wherever the f*ck it’s at.”
The fight on Saturday was Masvidal’s first appearance since he announced his UFC retirement in 2023. While he remains under contract with the promotion, Masvidal got permission from UFC to cross over into boxing to put together the fight with Diaz. Because that deal is still in place, Masvidal can’t do an MMA fight again without returning to UFC, but it sounds like boxing remains his main focus for now anyways.
“With the UFC, I’ve got a couple more [fights on my contract],” Masvidal revealed. “With Fanmio, I’ve got two. So I’m definitely going to do those two boxing matches.
“Win or lose, it was a great experience. I learned a lot about the trade of boxing, the craft of boxing. I learned a lot about myself as well. I’ve got a lot of miles left in the tank. So I don’t know who’s going to be the next opponent, but we’re going to be looking for somebody.”
Ideally, Masvidal would like to settle things with Diaz once and for all, because technically they’re tied at one apiece after two fights. Masvidal got the win over Diaz at UFC 244 back in 2019 before dropping the majority decision in the rematch in the boxing ring. He would love nothing more than to book a third fight against Diaz, but this time at a location where perhaps the crowd might be a little more evenly split.
“We’re 1-1, we can run it back some place like Vegas,” Masvidal said. “Make it a neutral place and let’s f*cking throw down.”
