Jorge Masvidal says he’s open to fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov if the UFC makes him the right offer

Jorge Masvidal hasn’t fought at lightweight since 2015 when he lost to Al Iaquinta by split-decision. But, that may change if the money is right.

Since he decided to move up to welterweight he has become an elite-fighter. In 2019 he knocked out Darren Till, Ben Askren and TKO’d Nate Diaz to capture the promotions BMF title. He also is next in line to fight for the welterweight title.

Even though he is comfortable at welterweight, Masvidal says he would drop down in weight to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov. But, in order to do so, he would need to be paid quite a bit as making lightweight would not be easy.

“Yeah, if the UFC gives us an offer that I couldn’t refuse. To cut the weight at this point would be horrendous for me. I haven’t made that weight in a while and soon as they took the IV’s out from the UFC I couldn’t no longer make 155-pounds,” Jorge Masvidal said on the HalfCast podcast with Mark Hunt and Tyson Pedro. “So, I went up as fast as I could. For me to do that now, I’d have to put myself through so much suffering. At 170 pounds I am already five percent body fat. So, the rest is just straight water, about 18 or 19 pounds is just water.”

It seems unlikely Masvidal would move back down to lightweight, especially after all the recent success he has had at welterweight. But, that doesn’t rule out a fight against Nurmagomedov as the undefeated Dagestani lightweight champion could move up in weight. Especially if Masvidal is the welterweight champion at the time.

For now, Jorge Masvidal is focused on Kamaru Usman as the two are set to fight in July at International Fight Week. After that, he will look for the biggest payday, which could be a drop-down to lightweight to fight Nurmagomedov.

Would you be interested in seeing Jorge Masvidal vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov at lightweight? Sound off in the comment section, PENN Nation!

This article first appeared on BJPENN.com on 2/19/2020.