Jorge Masvidal Says He'll Fight in UFC This Year, Won't Be 'Played or Underpaid'

UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal said Wednesday he will fight this year even as he reiterated pay-related concerns.

Masvidal made the comments on his YouTube channel Wednesday (h/t Farah Hannoun of MMAjunkie):

"Yeah I'm gonna fight this year. God willing, I'm gonna fight this year. What's not gonna happen is I'm not gonna be played or underpaid, that's for sure. I have a value, a formula we've come up with for what I'm worth, and that comes off 16 years of doing this, of seeing the field in and out. I'm not some rookie, I'm not some guy challenging for the title for the first time in my life.

"I've been in this position before in different organizations and stuff and we know how to calculate what I bring in and I want a fair share of what I bring in. ... It's about how much I want to receive from the pay-per-view, how much share I want from the PPV, that's one of the many things I'm fighting about. I don't feel that that cut is fair and I don't agree with it."

Masvidal, who is UFC's No. 3 welterweight, has won his last three fights, all of which have come via knockout or TKO.

Masvidal has gone back and forth with UFC President Dana White of late, with the fighter even asking the UFC to release him if he's "not worth it," per a June 5 tweet.

"Why make me fight for half of what I made on my last fight cause the other dude can't draw?" Masvidal wrote.

The "other dude" in question is welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, and failed negotiations regarding a potential Usman-Masvidal fight have served as the backbone of Masvidal's concerns.

"Kamaru has asked for an insane amount of money," Masvidal told ESPN's Ariel Helwani (h/t Nolan King of MMAjunkie) in late May.

"He had one of the worst pay-per-view cards of 2019. I had the best—just by numbers. This is not an opinion. I had the most sold pay-per-views of 2019. So he thinks he's hit the jackpot and he's asking crazy money from the UFC. The UFC has told him, 'No,' on several occasions."

White cited the fact that Masvidal was signed to an eight-fight deal earlier this year, per Damon Martin of MMA Fighting.

"Here's the thing with Masvidal," White said in part.

"We just signed a new deal with Masvidal. Masvidal just signed a new eight-fight deal. He's got seven fights left on his deal. My people were working with him and trying to get a deal done with him when he already has a deal."

One week later, Masvidal accused White of "strong-arming" him into a contract: "I already explained why I signed a new deal. It's either take it or leave it and not get paid. I would've signed another deal if it was done in good faith. He called me night before he wants to announce and tell me take or it leave it. That's not negotiating that's strong arming."

White later said UFC fighters don't have careers. Rather, they receive opportunities to fight and make money (h/t Chris Taylor of BJPenn.com):

"My number one goal always is that I don't want to layoff any of my employees and I don't want fighters inactive and unable to compete. You know when you are a professional athlete, you have a very small window of opportunity. A very limited amount of time.

"You know, we get into all this money s--t and stuff that is going on right now. Everybody acts like this is a f--king career. This isn't a career. This is not a career. This is an opportunity. Anything can happen in any given moment. Your knee could blow out, your back, your this, your that. Um, Covid-19 you know? Who the hell knows what is coming down the pipeline. So you have to take every opportunity that you can get."

Masvidal responded on his YouTube channel (h/t Jed Meshew of MMA Fighting):

"I want to address something actually, because of the Dana White thing. Dana White said the other day - and maybe you can explain this - he said this is not a career, this is an opportunity. I've been doing this 16 years, s--t I've had a lot of opportunity, huh? That's crazy. So, it's not a career Dana White, that's interesting to know man. I really think sometimes we don't see eye-to-eye on anything you f--king you say, bro. How is this not a career, you know? It's crazy."

Masvidal is 35-13 as a professional MMA fighter dating back to his 2003 debut. The 35-year-old is 12-6 in the UFC.