Two months before his long-awaited UFC return, Nate Diaz is swearing off the lightweight division where he spent the majority of his career.
Diaz, 34, indicated a tough weight cut is part of his decision. But he’s also convinced he’s conquered every challenge in the division – including champ Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“I’m just done with the 155 thing,” he said today on ESPN.com’s “Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show” (go to the 59:00 mark in the video below). “That’s in the past now. I think it’s time to start fighting at a more comfortable weight class.
“There’s nothing for me there. I’ve already done everything, beat everybody. I feel like I’m the king of that division anyways – I mean, I am the king of that division. There’s no love for me over there, so it’s not worth putting any time into that.”
Diaz (19-11 MMA, 14-9 UFC) said he sought a fight with newly minted UFC welterweight – and ex-lightweight champ – Anthony Pettis (22-8 MMA, 9-7 UFC) when other opponents failed to materialize, including Nurmagomedov (26-0 MMA, 11-0 UFC).
“I already slapped him in his face, and I beat Conor before him, quicker than him, easier than him, and then he’s just going to ignore that and act like whatever?” said Diaz, who faces Pettis at UFC 241 on Aug. 17 at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. “He’s a little big-headed right now, so I don’t need to fight him, anyway, because I’ve already got a victory over him. So he’s just going to hide out and play champ and act like he’s Mr. (expletive) Humble Khabib. I’m not buying that (expletive). I don’t need to sit around here and chase nobody. If anybody needs chasing, they’ve got to come this way. I’m going to retire that vision as champ.”
The slap is a reference to a well-publicized skirmish in 2015 that involved Diaz, his older brother Nick, Nurmagomedov and his teammates at a WSOF (now rebranded as the PFL) event.
“The reason why he got slapped was because he was not humble and not this nice guy,” Nate Diaz said. “He was sitting there with his friends trying to get a fight with me, taking a picture with me, making fun of me. So I capitalized and told him, ‘(Expletive) you,’ and I slapped him in his face, and he was spooked for his life.
“His whole team, nobody did (expletive). I had Kron Gracie with me, and they had two on 15. And that whole Russian team thought they were hard to everyone else, but they were scared when that happened.”
Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, did not respond to a request for comment.
Diaz also said Dustin Poirier, the current UFC interim titleholder, “pussed out” of a scheduled fight at UFC 230, prompting the delay of his comeback. Poirier withdrew from the event due to a hip injury.
“I think he mentally pussed out, and that’s the guy fighting for the title? And Khabib’s loving that, because he’s going to have an easy fight,” he said. “Get the (expletive) out of here. So that’s why that division retired. I own all those (expletive).”
Via text, Poirier responded “lol no” when asked for comment. Poirier’s manager, Robert Roveta, wrote, “He says a lot of crazy (expletive). I would say check your source.”
For now, Diaz is content with his choice to face Pettis, a fighter whom he respects as a talent in the octagon. He said the two of them are a much-needed shot in the arm for the sport.
“It’s getting boring, the fight game,” Diaz said. “So if I’m going to take part in any fight, I would like it to be a fight that’s interesting.”
For more on UFC 241, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
