Jorge Masvidal biography: 13 things about ex-UFC fighter from Miami, Florida

Jorge J. Masvidal Jr. is a Cuban-Peruvian-American retired mixed martial artist born and raised in Miami, Florida, United States. His fight name is Gamebred.

Masvidal has an older brother named John Masvidal. Their father Jorge Masvidal Fernandez Sr. is Cuban and their mother Maria Carmen Masvidal is Peruvian.

In 1971, Jorge Sr. immigrated from Cuba to the U.S. In 1989, he was imprisoned for drug trafficking.

When Jorge Jr. was a child, he was told that his father was in the U.S. Army. In 1997, the son found out the truth about his father being in prison and started visiting him there regularly.

While attending St. Brendan High School in Westchester, Miami-Dade County, Jorge Jr. competed in wrestling but he failed to stay eligible because of his grades. Before becoming a professional MMA fighter, he competed in one of the backyard brawls of his fellow Miami resident Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson.

As a professional MMA fighter, Jorge Jr. competed in the welterweight and lightweight division. He is 5’11” tall and he holds a professional MMA record of 35 wins and 17 losses.

Jorge Jr. and Iman Kawa have two daughters and one son together. Here are 13 more things about the retired MMA fighter:

1. On May 24, 2003, he made his professional MMA debut. 
2. From 2003 to 2006, he competed in the Absolute Fighting Championship and Full Throttle.
3. From 2006 to 2007, he competed in BodogFIGHT.
4. From 2007 to 2012, he competed in Strikeforce and Crazy Horse Fights.
5. From 2008 to 2009, he competed in Sengoku and Bellator MMA.
6. In 2010, he competed in G-Force Fights, Astra and Shark Fights.
7. From 2013 to 2023, he competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
8. In 2020, he launched a mezcal brand called El Recuerdo de Oaxaca Joven via a partnership with Recuerdo Mezcal.
9. On June 18, 2021, his bare-knuckle MMA promotion Gamebred Fighting Championship held its inaugural pay-per-view event in Biloxi, Mississippi, USA.
10. On September 24, 2021, he made his debut for All Elite Wrestling at AEW Grand Slam.
11. On January 21, 2022, his MMA promotion iKON FC held its inaugural event in West Palm Beach, Florida.
12. On April8, 2023, he announced his retirement from professional MMA competition.
13. On November 12, 2023, he turned 39.

TIMELINE

2013

• On April 20, 2013, he made his UFC debut at “UFC on Fox 7” in San Jose, California, USA where he defeated Tim Means via unanimous decision.
• On July 27, 2013, he submitted Michael Chiesa at “UFC on Fox 8” in Seattle, Washington, USA.
• On November 6, 2013, he lost to Rustam Khabilov via unanimous decision at “UFC: Fight for the Troops 3” in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, USA.

2014

• On April 19, 2014, he defeated Pat Healy via unanimous decision at “UFC on Fox 11” in Orlando, Florida.
• On July 26, 2014, he defeated Daron Cruickshank at “UFC on Fox 12” in San Jose.
• On September 27, 2014, he defeated James Krause at “UFC 178” in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

2015

• On April 4, 2015, he lost to Al Iaquinta via split decision at “UFC Fight Night 63” in Fairfax, Virginia, USA.
• On July 12, 2015, he knocked out Cezar Ferreira at “The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale” in Las Vegas.
• On November 28, 2015, he lost to Benson Henderson at “UFC Fight Night 79” in Seoul, South Korea.

2016

• On May 29, 2016, he lost to Lorenz Larkin via split decision at “UFC Fight Night 88” in Las Vegas.
• On July 30, 2016, he defeated Ross Pearson via unanimous decision at “UFC 201” in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
• On December 3, 2016, he defeated Jake Ellenberger at “The Ultimate Fighter 24 Finale” in Las Vegas.

2017

• On January 28, 2017, he defeated Donald Cerrone at “UFC on Fox 23” in Denver, Colorado, USA.
• On May 13, 2017, he lost to Demian Maia via split decision at “UFC 211” in Dallas, Texas, USA.
• On November 4, 2017, he lost to Stephen Thompson via unanimous decision at “UFC 217” in New York City, New York, USA.

2018

2019

• On March 16, 2019, he knocked out Darren Till at “UFC Fight Night 147” in London, England, United kingdom.
• On July 6, 2019, he knocked out Ben Askren at “UFC 239” in Las Vegas after 5 seconds in the first round, which is the fastest knockout in UFC history.
• On November 2, 2019, he defeated Nate Diaz via technical knockout at “UFC 244” in New York City.

2020

• On July 12, 2020, he failed to dethrone UFC Welterweight Champion Kamaru Usman after losing via unanimous decision at “UFC 251” in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

2021

• On April 24, 2021, he was knocked out by Usman, then UFC Welterweight Champion, in their rematch at “UFC 261” in Jacksonville, Florida.

2022

• On March 5, 2022, he lost to Colby Covington via unanimous decision at “UFC 272” in Las Vegas.
• On March 21, 2022, he allegedly assaulted Covington outside a restaurant in Miami Beach, Florida.
• On March 23, 2022, he was arrested.
• On April 21, 2022, he pleaded not guilty to aggravated battery resulting in great bodily harm and criminal mischief.
• On April 28, 2022, he was issued a stay away order.

2023

• On April 8, 2023, he lost to Gilbert Burns via unanimous decision at “UFC 287” in Miami.
• On November 6, 2023, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge and two felony charges stemming from his alleged crime on March 21, 2022 were dropped.