Jorge Masvidal Halts Promotion License Application, Pleads Not Guilty To Charges
UPDATE (March 24, 2022 5:52 PM ET): Jorge Masvidal entered a written plea of not guilty to the charges of aggravated battery and criminal mischief. He is set to be arraigned at 9 a.m. on April 21.
Jorge Masvidal’s legal incident has already hindered his promotion.
Masvidal has elected to delay his pending application for a license for his Gamebred Fighting Championship in Nevada. His request for a license for the promotion was on Nevada State Athletic Commission meeting’s agenda on Tuesday.
“Since I do have an open case, I’m not supposed to talk about it, but I guess you’re referencing that,” Masvidal said.
“Yeah, if we could table it, it’d be better. Right now, I had a mutual combatant with another athlete, and you know, I can’t say too much on this, but if we could table it for later, that would be amazing.”
Masvidal was arrested and charged with aggravated battery and criminal mischief late Tuesday night, according to ESPN and MMA Fighting. He was released from a Miami correctional center on a $15,000 bond.
If convicted, the welterweight could face up to 15 years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine since aggravated battery is considered a second-degree felony.
The arrest came after Masvidal allegedly punched Colby Covington twice while he was leaving dinner on Monday at Papi Steak Restaurant with The Nelk Boys, a popular podcast group that attends UFC events.
Covington, whose name was redacted from the report after invoking Marsy’s Law, suffered a fractured tooth and bruised wrist. Covington reportedly identified Masvidal as the attacker when he heard him shout “You shouldn’t have been talking about my kids.”
Masvidal seemed to address the incident later on a Twitter video saying “call this the show your face challenge … what’s up, I’m from Dade county.”
If Covington chooses to press charges, Masvidal would be facing the penalties.
Covington defeated Masvidal on March 5 at UFC 272 in the main event via unanimous decision.