Jorge Masvidal is bringing his bareknuckle MMA promotion back to
life. | Jason Burgos/Sherdog.com
After a hiatus that lasted well over a year, Jorge
Masvidal is reviving
Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA.
The former
UFC welterweight title challenger revealed to MMAjunkie.com that his organization will return
on April 10 in the Dominican Republic, with another event planned
for May 1 in Miami. The promotion’s relaunch is highlighted by two
$500,000 tournaments, which will feature 16 fighters in brackets at
heavyweight and lightweight.
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Masvidal announced four of the heavyweight pairings on Monday:
Anthony
Smith vs. Chase
Sherman; Guto
Inocente vs. Mohammed
Usman; Alexandr Romanov vs. Nikolay
Kovalenko, and Todd Duffee
vs. Bruno
Cappelozza. Smith is the biggest surprise of the field: The
former UFC light heavyweight title challenger retired last
year.
The last Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA event was held on Nov. 15, 2024
at Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Mississippi. Over the
course of its first eight events, the promotion featured notable
fighters such as Junior dos
Santos, Alan
Belcher, Roy Nelson,
Fabricio
Werdum and Jason
Knight. Though gloves are not used, Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA
utilizes the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts for its bouts.
Keeping the Dream Alive
“I never wanted to leave,” Masvidal said. “The whole time I was
working, in the shadows in the back. It’s what business owners do.
I was just hustling, brother. Seeing what I could do, what networks
I could get on, what sponsors I could bring on board. I did
everything to keep the dream alive, just like fighting. I was able
to secure some funds, so here we go.”
While Masvidal himself has teased a return to the UFC on more than
one occasion (a recent rumor had him facing Conor
McGregor at the White House), “Gamebred” hasn’t set foot in the
Octagon since dropping a unanimous decision against Gilbert
Burns in April 2023. His most recent combat sports appearance
was a boxing loss to Nate Diaz in
July 2024.