It’s easy to forget but Nate Diaz fought twice in 2019. First of all, he returned against Anthony Pettis and put a beating on the former lightweight champion. Then he famously called out Jorge Masvidal and the pair went on to fight for the BMF title.
Diaz suffered a tough defeat against Masvidal via doctor’s stoppage. Although he claims that he was starting to dominate the fight and that Masvidal was slowing down, that is a revisionist narrative. In truth, Masvidal was close to stopping the fight at one stage. He also clearly did the most damage.
But Diaz remains a draw. Ever since he defeated Conor McGregor his name has shone in lights. The Stockton, California fighter is a cult hero in the UFC. Furthermore, promotion president Dana White says that the younger Diaz brother will definitely fight again in the near future.
Action Fighter
With their no-nonsense, never-say-die attitudes, the Diaz brothers firmly embedded themselves in the public’s consciousness. Even though they aren’t brilliant on the microphones, their gangster images made them very popular. A case in point is the Stockton slap. This where the Diaz brothers literally slap their opponent with their palm across the face. It’s humiliating. Company President Dana White says that he thinks Diaz will come back.
“Oh, definitely. Definitely. I think Nate will fight (in the UFC) again,” White told ESPN.
Who would you like to see him fight?
Draw
Even though Diaz lost the BMF title fight, he is still a draw. A rematch with Masvidal is still possible after the controversial nature of the doctor’s stoppage. However, there is also talk of a trilogy clash with Conor McGregor. Right now the record between the two men stands at 1-1. Is it the right time to get this fight done?
One man who would love to fight Diaz is Mike Perry. ‘Platinum’ is a controversial figure. He recently made the news after slapping an older man in a restaurant following a verbal altercation. Furthermore, his girlfriend cornered him in his most recent fight. He recently wrote in an Instagram story:
“(Nate Diaz) we should smoke a blunt before we get in and throw hands and cut the check wassup.
Journeyman
One man who isn’t impressed by Diaz is Gilbert Burns. The Brazilian is expected to get the next welterweight title shot. The UFC booked him to fight Kamaru Usman before he fell ill. Then they drafted Jorge Masvidal as a replacement. Burns condemned Diaz’s record.
“He’s a journeyman. I think I can beat the s**t out of Nate Diaz any day of the week,” Burns told ESPN. “Even with corona on me, I believe I can beat Nate Diaz. I can outbox him, outgrapple him, I can slap that guy up easily. The guy comes out and (makes) those comments like – I’m a real fighter too, bro.
I used to respect these guys a lot, but guess what? I’m a real fighter, too. You fought Conor on a couple of days’ notice. I fought a Russian guy, 20-0, on a couple days’ notice. It bothered me a little bit, because I’m a real fighter, too.”
