Miami’s own Jorge ‘Gamebred‘ Masvidal has made a name for himself when it comes to his in-cage accomplishments and outside antics. Despite being drowned in altercations and controversies in the past, the 38-year-old has still maintained to compete at the highest level in the MMA realm.
Hardcore fans remember Masvidal since his backyard fighting days under the tutelage of the late Kimbo Slice. The Miami native has fought the who’s who under several promotions. Despite being signed to the UFC for over a decade, the former two-time title challenger hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down.
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‘Gamebred’ has remained a huge draw for the promotion’s Pay-per-view business for almost 4 years now. However, Jorge never forgot his roots and where he came from. Jorge owes much of his success to his family that believed in him since day one. The highly successful and disciplined athlete has always had the back of his family, especially his father, Jorge Masvidal Sr. The duo has been with each other through thick and thin.
Who is Jorge ‘Kalifa’ Masvidal?
Having been born and raised in Miami, Florida, fans assume Jorge to be of Cuban descent. However, the 38-year-old has mixed ethnicity thanks to his parents. The UFC welterweight is the son of a Cuban father, while his mother has Peruvian roots. Jorge often refers to him as Papa Dukes, and on some occasions, Jorge ‘Kalifa’ Masvidal.
Masvidal Sr. was born and brought up in Cuba. However, he migrated to America at the mere age of 20. In an attempt to escape the Cuban unrest, ‘Kalifa’ left Cuba in a self-made raft using tires. At the time he ended up in the Virgin Islands, eventually being extradited to Miami, Florida. As per Jorge, his uncles tried to flee as well but everyone else failed.
As per his father, he had a best friend and his uncle who planned the escape from Cuba. Using the materials at their disposal and their spontaneous craftsmanship, the three created a raft to float upon. However, on the following day, the water in one of their containers got contaminated, leading to dehydration for everyone on board. Luckily, through sheer determination, the three made it to the Virgin Islands.
Donald Trump Jr is doing a Florida bus tour with a cage fighter, Jorge Masvidal. It’s called Fighters Against Socialism
Jorge wore a black+gold Adidas tracky and talked about how his father fled communist Cuba by floating on a tyre for 6days
This is him introducing ‘The Don Jr’ pic.twitter.com/7fViIogmni
— Ben Riley-Smith (@benrileysmith) October 11, 2020
Jorge has famously said the 1971 story on numerous occasions. One such incident was during the ‘Fighters Against Socialism’ rally in Florida where he was joined by Donald Trump Jr.
Jorge has shown interest in visiting Cuba in the past, However, Masvidal Sr. has always turned down the urge. As per Jorge, his father told him, “You’re gonna be helping out the communist government if you go over there. And I would appreciate it if you wouldn’t because that’s what I ran from.”
Why was Jorge’s father in jail?
Masvidal Sr. started a new life in the hope of a better future for his children Jorge and elder brother John. He served as a construction worker, but soon enough his shady past caught up to him. As a result, officials put him behind bars on charges of drug trafficking and manslaughter. As per reports, Masvidal Sr. is out under supervised rules.
At the time of his father’s imprisonment, Jorge was only 4 years old. His mother chose not to shine a light on the current situation because she wanted to protect Jorge. So she ended up lying to Masvidal that his father was serving in the army. Jorge started to hate his father because of the poverty that followed in the house. However, his mother spilled the beans by the time he turned 13.
From then on, Jorge visited him once a week until he turned 21. Despite the tough times, his mother tried to make ends meet and support a young Jorge. She deserves as much credit for Masvidal’s success as her husband, as she single-handedly managed to keep the family intact. At the moment, the relationship status of Masvidal Sr. and his wife is unknown to the public. However, Masvidal has stated that the two are very dear to him.