Gunnar Nelson says Jorge Masvidal didn’t take a fight with him in favor of a potential lightweight return.
Nelson is scheduled to meet Alex Oliveira at UFC 231. The booking is a relief for “Gunni,” as he claims he struggled finding ranked welterweights to share the Octagon with upon his return. If Nelson is to be believed, “Gamebred” was on the table.
Gunnar Nelson Talks Missed Jorge Masvidal Fight
Nelson recently appeared on MMAFighting.com‘s Eurobash podcast. He talked about being offered the Masvidal fight and why it never materialized:
“They said Masvidal first. They did throw a few names out there, but I didn’t see a lot, but obviously I just wanted to get a ranked opponent if possible. Masvidal said ‘no’, I think he’s going down to lightweight or something. [Masvidal] said ‘no’ anyway, we did expect that, but I was very happy that I got Alex Oliveira because I think he’s ranked one above me and he’s a great fighter. I was expecting that it might be someone that’s unranked. I would have taken it to be honest because at this stage I just want to get in there. It didn’t really matter who it was for me. I just told my team, ‘Tell me who I’m fighting and I’ll be ready’.”
Luckily for Nelson, he scored a fight with a 13th ranked 170-pound bruiser on a stacked card. UFC 231 is set to be headlined by a featherweight title bout between champion Max Holloway and Brian Ortega. In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko and Joanna Jedrzejczyk will collide for the vacant UFC women’s flyweight title.
Do you think Gunnar Nelson got a tougher or easier fight in Alex Oliveira?
