Report | Jorge Masvidal is keen to step in against Neil Magny at UFC Liverpool

Late last week, the UFC’s upcoming debut in Liverpool, England lost its compelling welterweight co-main event, as Iceland’s Gunnar Nelson was forced out of his fight with Neil Magny with an injury.

“Unfortunately I have to withdraw from my fight against Neil Magny on May 27th in Liverpool,” Nelson said in a Facebook post shortly after this regrettable news broke. “Last weekend I injured my knee. I will undergo an operation right away and I’ll be out for 8-10 weeks. I’m sorry to my family, my opponent, my teammates, the fans and the UFC. This is a huge blow to me and I’m at a loss for words to describe the disappointment I am feeling. I was really feeling up for this fight, the training camp was going great and everything was just perfect until this happened. When all is said and done this is the fight business and injuries are sometimes an unfortunate part of it given the physical rigors us athletes put our bodies through. I will keep on evolving as a fighter while I’m on the sidelines and I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

While Nelson’s withdrawal from this card is a definite blow, the good news is that sixth-ranked UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal is angling to step in and replace him.

Masvidal’s interest in this fight was reported by Ariel Helwani on Twitter.

Jorge Masvidal’s manager, Abraham Kawa, has pitched the UFC on making Jorge Masvidal vs Neil Magny at a 180-pound catchweight for the Liverpool card on 5/27 now that Gunnar Nelson is out. No word just yet on if the UFC will accept.

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 1, 2018

“Jorge Masvidal’s manager, Abraham Kawa, has pitched the UFC on making Jorge Masvidal vs Neil Magny at a 180-pound catchweight for the Liverpool card on 5/27 now that Gunnar Nelson is out,” Helwani said in a Tuesday afternoon Tweet. “No word just yet on if the UFC will accept.”

Interestingly, Jorge Masvidal and Neil Magny have discussed fighting one another many times in the past. This late-notice, 180-pound catchweight could finally be their opportunity to do so.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 5/1/2018.