The unfortunate news of Gilbert Burns and his two cornermen testing positive for Coronavirus turned out to be a bummer for fight fans waiting for UFC 251. However, the same has come as an opportunity for other welterweights who are willing to step up to the occasion on short notice. Jorge Masvidal is one of them.

The fight between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns for the 170-pounds title was the headliner of UFC 251. It was the first event on Dana White‘s ambitious project of Fight Island. With Burns not boarding UFC’s charter flight from Las Vegas to Dubai, it is certain that he wouldn’t be a part of the fight.

Ariel Helwani talked to the manager of the BMF belt holder Jorge Masvidal. Abraham Kawa told Helwani that his client is ready to fight Kamaru Usman on just a week’s notice.

If Masvidal and Usman end up fighting, then it would be exactly what the UFC wanted in the first place. ‘Gamebred’ was the initial choice to fight ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ for the belt. However, the fight fell through after a bout of failed negotiations between Masvidal and the UFC.

Masvidal claimed that the UFC was asking him to accept a payday lesser than his previous fight against Nate Diaz. Since then Jorge and the UFC have been at loggerheads with the beef even becoming very public. Masvidal even demanded his release from the UFC.

Prior to this update from his manager, Masvidal tweeted the meaning of his nickname. Given the timing of the post, it was certain that he was hinting at the possibility of him being a replacement for Gilbert Burns.

Colby Covington has also offered to step in at UFC 251

Apart from Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington is also one of the fighters who offered to step in at UFC 251. Covington has already faced Kamaru Usman once in December last year. ‘Chaos’ gave Usman one of his toughest challenges till date.

Moreover, Covington isn’t just rooting for a fight against the welterweight champ to save the day. He is also open to fighting former teammate Jorge Masvidal to give the fans a fight they’re willing to see.

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Despite two big names offering to step up, the camp of Gilbert Burns is hoping that the fight gets rescheduled at a later date.