Jorge Masvidal opens Nate Diaz up with bloody cuts, wins 'baddest mother f-----' title, then celebrates with The Rock

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal.

• Jorge Masvidal easily beat Nate Diaz to be crowned the "baddest mother f-----" in the game.
• Masvidal out-struck Diaz, opened up cuts, and forced a doctor's stoppage at the end of the third round.
• He was awarded with the $50,000 "BMF" title, which was presented to him by the Hollywood hardman and former WWE superstar The Rock.
• You can watch highlight clips of Masvidal's victory below.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Jorge Masvidal opened Nate Diaz up with bloody cuts, forcing a bloody stoppage in the UFC 244 main event at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Saturday.

The cuts were so bad it forced a referee's stoppage, anointing Masvidal as the "baddest mother f-----" in the game. He was even awarded with a $50,000 "BMF" belt by the Hollywood hardman and former WWE superstar The Rock.

It has been a wild year for Masvidal. He began 2019 by knocking out the English fighter Darren Till at a UFC Fight Night event in London in March. Four months later he broke the record for fastest knockout in UFC history, stopping Ben Askren with a flying knee at UFC 239.

Then, on November 2, he never looked out of his depth when he defeated Diaz with a statement-making performance.

Masvidal began the fight by charging at Diaz as if he were about to launch another flying knee, the same one he concussed Askren with. Masvidal laughed as Diaz ran away.

With quickfire slugging, head kicks, and ground-and-pound, Masvidal asserted an early authority on the fight.

Masvidal had Diaz hurt in round two, also.

By the third, it was clear Masvidal was bleeding heavily from cuts above his eye. They were so bad, the doctor intervened and said Diaz could not continue much to the chagrin of the crowd, who booed the verdict.

Masvidal was ahead on the Octagonside judges' scorecards, leading 30-26, 30-27, and 30-26 at the time of the stoppage, with two judges regarding round two as a dominant, 10-8 round for the Floridian fighter, the ESPN reporter Marc Raimondi tweeted.

Diaz said after the loss that, well, bleeding happens. "Blood don't hurt," he said.

And Masvidal didn't seem happy with the result, either, saying that because he did not get a chance to stop Diaz for good, he would welcome a rematch.

"I didn't get to baptize Nate, so we're going to run it back," the man dubbed "Street Jesus" said in the middle of the Octagon.

Diaz needed multiple stitches to repair the wounds.

But as the clear winner, Masvidal was awarded the inaugural BMF belt, and he had his fellow Floridian wrap the title around his waist.

Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images

Masvidal and The Rock.

With victory, Masvidal, whose record is 3-0 for the year, moves to 35 career wins (16 by knockout and two submissions) against 13 losses.

Diaz drops to 20 wins (four by knockout and 12 by submission) against 12 losses.

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