Nate Diaz

Nate Diaz had some serious fighting words for YouTuber-turned-novelty-boxer Jake Paul on Tuesday. 

The main gist? Paul has never fought an actual boxer. And Ben Askren caught some strays, too:

Coming from a retired wrestler who can’t fight or box

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) November 22, 2021

He sucks jake
You’d get smoked n a real fight tho
You can’t really fight
Boxing matches with wrestlers only

Let that sink in

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) November 23, 2021

Those tweets followed Askren saying that he thought Paul might be a decent boxer on the Lex Fridman Podcast (h/t BJPenn.com):

So the thing I said when I went in to fight him [Jake Paul] is maybe he's good or maybe he's not. We really have no idea to this point, you know. I knew that Tyron was a lot better in boxing than I was. And so I thought that there is a good likelihood that Tyron beats him up but there is a chance that Jake is kind of good at this. I think what played out is he's kind of good at it. And if you saw the way I saw it, he was still impressive in his showing and he has obviously put a lot of time into it. So, he's not bad, I'll say that much.

Diaz is going to agree to disagree with that sentiment. 

Welcome back to TGIFighting, where we talk to top fighters, preview the weekend's combat sports action and make crotchety observations about the combat sports news of the day. Ready? Let's proceed.

When Kamaru Usman steps inside the chain link Saturday for his rematch with Colby Covington, the bad blood will stay backstage.

That may be the biggest change from their original bout, but it's hardly the only one. The truth is, the champ and his recent evolution—physical, emotional, mental, psychological—portends big trouble for Covington in the main event of UFC 268 at New York's venerable Madison Square Garden.

In fact, I might go so far as to predict that Usman will dominate Covington this time, unlike the more back-and-forth affair we saw in the 2019 original. Why? Let's dive into the details.

Before we get to Covington, it's instructive to look at another rematch: his run-back with Jorge Masvidal (35-15) back in April. The original bout saw Usman (19-1) lay a gavel-to-gavel clinic on the Miami street-fighting legend, making the second bout a bit unnecessary unless you're counting dollars and cents. There's plenty of money in this rematch with Covington (16-2) too, but it's a different dynamic this time. Usman finished Covington in the fifth round, but not before Covington took rounds off the champ.

Still, there's symmetry between the two rematches, and it rests with Usman's ongoing evolution from a scary competitor to a champion to a fully self-actualized fighter.

In their initial matchup, Masvidal actually had some success with wrestling, stopping 11 of 16 Usman takedown attempts. In response, Usman used the clinch to slow down the action (16:38 of control time to none for Masvidal). This plus a high work rate (263 total strikes landed to Masvidal's 88) exhausted Masvidal and kept his boxing under wraps. But it didn't exactly light the world on fire.

Usman heard the "boring" labels and played the "put some respect on my name" card, even as he sat at No. 5 in the pound-for-pound rankings. But he knew the stigma wouldn't go away unless he did something about it.

His humiliation of Gilbert Burns (20-4) was a good first step. After that, in an interview with UFC broadcaster and podcasting king Joe Rogan, Usman called for the Masvidal rematch, predicting a stoppage this time around.

MMA World encapsulated both moments in one video:

"Guess what? It's not done," Usman said. "I'll give [Masvidal] a whole training camp. I guarantee you he won't sign on that dotted line. Because this time I'm gonna finish your ass."

Masvidal did ultimately sign, but maybe he shouldn't have.

In that rematch, Usman's standup game was, if not fully reinvented, massively improved. He managed range better, threw more effective combinations and landed everything with more precision. He relied less on wall-and-stall and stay-busy striking and racked up a lot more damage en route to a second-round KO. A laser-guided right hand to the chin, set up by takedown feints, was the decisive sequence.

Fast-forward to this week, when Usman made comments reminiscent of those he made before the Masvidal rematch.

"I want to make it a little bit more flawless this time around," Usman told reporters.

At Thursday's news conference, Usman went into more detail. Spoiler alert: it doesn't seem like these two will be sharing a frosty beverage any time soon, but Usman is working to detach that from the competition at hand.

“It’s changed a lot because I actually grew a little bit of appreciation for the guy,” Usman said, per MMA Junkie. “I appreciate everything that he does, everything that he comes with. I love it because it’s another challenge for me to get over and at this point in life, at this point in my career, I look forward to those challenges. On Saturday night, I’ll do what I do best and that’s smash another challenge.”

There's that symmetry again, and there's every reason to believe this mental shift as well as the new wrinkles in his standup game will make him an even better fighter come Saturday night. Ever since joining up with vaunted coach Trevor Wittman, Usman is more adept than ever at game-planning, with Wittman bringing out Usman's already high fight IQ. Usman now evokes memories of fighters like Anderson Silva or Demetrious Johnson, learning computers capable of following complex decision trees even as the live bullets fly.

This is good, because this will likely be another standup war. In their first contest, neither Usman nor Covington attempted a takedown the entire contest. Both men are very strong offensive and defensive wrestlers (Usman has a 100 percent takedown defense rate, while Covington sits at 75), meaning the skill sets cancel each other out. Let's also not forget this is still a grudge match. With so many eyeballs on this rematch and two large personalities in the cage, both men will seek the knockout.

Covington won't be a sitting duck on the feet. He has power, skill and a boatload of cardio, but he's far from a black-belt standup fighter, at least not based on what we've seen to date. In the Masvidal rematch, Usman outstruck a striker. The way he strings together combinations and conserves energy are powerful assets. 

But Usman's real adjustment will come between the ears. The champ has admitted being a bit overwound in their original. But it's something Usman said he has cleaned up.

"For me, the wrong that I want to right is in that fight, I fought with emotion," Usman told reporters. "As much emotion I was willing to display is what I fought with, which is why I think I got hit quite a bit."

Given the physical and mental improvements we saw against Masvidal, as well as the calmness and poise he exuded, it looks like we'll see an even better Usman in Saturday's rematch, likely with yet another coat of polish applied. If past is prologue, he'll be more dynamic and more ready to bully the bully even more than last time. That will spell curtains for Covington.

         

Chimaev Is the Belle at the Ball

Last week before his utter destruction of Li Jinliang (18-7), Khamzat Chimaev (10-0) told me he still believed he was flying under the UFC radar.

Well, that's not the case any longer. He has the attention of the most important figures in the welterweight division and beyond.

The first is the champ himself. This week, Usman took time out from hyping UFC 268 to answer a question about the native Chechnyan. He wasn't committal either way, but there was a suggestion that Chimaev could move even further up the rankings sooner than later.

"He's done a tremendous job with the opposition he's been presented with," Usman said. "No shame in that, he's doing great. I like it, I love all the hype that's been there, but let's all be honest. Life is not fair. We learn that as kids. Some guys get a faster push, some guys don't. It is what it is."

Another potential name in the mix? One Nate Diaz (21-13). Chimaev called him out after his win, and the idea was quickly backstopped by UFC President Dana White.

The UFC would likely have to open its checkbook wide in order for Diaz to take the fight. But just the fact that Chimaev is mentioned in the same breath with either of these immortals is a testament to how far he rose up the ranks based largely on one of the most emphatic performances in recent UFC memory.

        

The Squeamish Bettor

Record to date: 22-7 

OK, time for a name change. Time to call this what it is. If you're a conservative bettor, if you're looking for a solid anchor for a parlay or if you're just looking for a way to impress your friends, you've come to the right place. Welcome to the low-risk end of the pool. 

As always, I'm walking my talk and betting these picks myself.

We'll do two this week. First, it would be disingenuous of me not to go for an Usman knockout after talking him up this much. That's currently +140.

The other pick goes for the legendary Frankie Edgar (24-9-1), the former lightweight champ who at 40 is near the end of his career. But here's guessing he still has enough quickness and mental acuity to defeat Marlon "Chito" Vera (17-7-1), a more deliberate opponent who won't be able to handle Edgar's work rate. Edgar is currently a slight underdog at +150, but if anyone knows anything about how to succeed as an underdog, it's Edgar.

Don't be surprised to see Edgar grab the win and then ride off into the sunset. The New Jersey native is fighting in friendly confines, and he surely knows what a storybook ending this would provide. Get your tissues ready, Edgar fans.

      

All stats courtesy of UFC Stats unless otherwise noted.

           

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If Dana White has his way, a Nate Diaz vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight will happen in the near future.

White told TMZ Sports he is "100 percent" interested in booking the fight and plans to talk to Diaz about making it happen. Chimaev called out Diaz after his first-round submission of Jingliang Li at UFC 267. 

“We’re going to talk to Nate (Diaz) about it,” White said. “One hundred percent. This guy is like nothing anyone has ever seen. When you think about it, he’s got more UFC wins than he’s been hit inside the Octagon. It’s insane. The other night they filmed his walkout on Instagram Live, and it broke the record. It’s the biggest Instagram Live we’ve ever done.”

Chimaev has reeled off 10 straight victories to start his pro MMA career, and he's won Performance of the Night in each of his four bouts with UFC. A matchup with Diaz, considered one of the toughest and most popular fighters to ever set foot in the Octagon, would go a long way toward turning Chimaev into a mainstream star. 

“Hey Diaz, let’s go, brother,” Chimaev told reporters after UFC 267. “Let’s go. You gonna get some smoke, bro. Let’s see who is the real gangster.”

Diaz has lost two straight fights and three of his last four overall. He's coming off a unanimous-decision loss to Leon Edwards that culminated in Diaz nearly making a comeback in the late rounds after being dominated early in the fight. 

Conor McGregor, who has lost three of his past four fights, had some trash talk for Nate Diaz after his brother Nick's TKO loss to Robbie Lawler on Saturday night at UFC 266. 

Because of course he did. 

Nate your boxing is piss compare to nicks. We been fed garbage with your sloppy shots the last few years. Can see the clear difference between the two brothers after last night. Balance, composure. Another level the big bro is on to you. I made you.

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) September 26, 2021

He said he enjoyed the bout between Nick Diaz and Lawler, however:

Nick/Rob was a good fight. The spin kick at the start gave the ground on Nick but he was veteran composed and was peppering lovely shots in. He just ate some big body shots and there was more coming Robbie was strong to the body it was veteran work all round. I enjoyed thoroughly

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) September 26, 2021

McGregor and Nate Diaz split their two meetings. McGregor and Nick Diaz have never fought.

When McGregor, 33, was one of the top fighters in the UFC, his trash talk had a certain charm to it. But now that he appears to be a middling fighter, at least in the past three years, it has lost some of its shine. 

As for the 36-year-old Nate Diaz, he made his return to the Octagon in June after a nearly two-year absence from the UFC, losing to Leon Edwards. 

Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz engaged in a heated Twitter exchange Tuesday.

McGregor kicked the fight off with an unprompted remark. That led to Diaz firing back, and the Twitter spat erupted (warning: the following tweets contain profanity and offensive language):

Who can’t? Come thru and see you little skinny fool you be smacked up and rolled up you bum. Calis mine.

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) August 31, 2021

Diaz was referencing the broken leg that McGregor suffered during his first-round TKO loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July. As for the "Calis mine" comment, MMA Fighting's Damon Martin noted that McGregor is in Los Angeles for rehab. Diaz fights out of Stockton, California.

It only got uglier from there, with both men firing back and forth. Diaz said that McGregor ran from him and claimed retired UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Poirier did the same.

Diaz also referenced Khabib's submission victory over McGregor in 2018. McGregor defended himself, referencing the all-out brawl his camp and Khabib's had. He also said that he broke his own leg by accident during the Poirier fight.

It’s just business remember your the sports man I showed Uguys this street shit I fought both your teams out the cage before any of Uguys realized the real fight game sporty lil bitches

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) August 31, 2021

More tweets dropped from McGregor showing him pummeling Diaz.

Eventually, Diaz and McGregor agreed to say goodbye but not before firing off a few more expletives to finish it off.

Fuck you 😊

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) August 31, 2021

McGregor and Diaz have faced each other in the Octagon twice before.

The first time ended with Diaz beating McGregor, who was making his welterweight debut, with a second-round rear-naked choke in March 2016.

McGregor got revenge the second time around, earning a majority decision win eight-and-a-half months later.

If Jake Paul is looking for his next opponent, Nate Diaz might have shot to the top of the list Sunday night.

The UFC fighter ripped into Paul and Tyron Woodley during their pay-per-view bout, saying both fighters "suck" in a tweet.

These guys both suck

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) August 30, 2021

Paul earned a split-decision victory over Woodley in a fight that was largely a disappointment to anyone looking for in-ring fireworks. Woodley, making his pro boxing debut at 39, largely took a conservative approach that left the Cleveland crowd booing at points during the eight-round fight.

Paul, who won his fourth straight professional boxing match, was the aggressor throughout but landed punches only sparingly and seemed to get gassed as the fight progressed. The YouTuber-turned-boxer had early-round knockouts in each of his first three fights over AnEsonGib, Nate Robinson and Ben Askren.

If Paul continues his trend of fighting late-career MMA stars, the 36-year-old Diaz would arguably be his biggest test yet. Known for his crowd-pleasing aggression, Diaz packs the pop to finally hand Paul his first career loss but would be at a size disadvantage. Paul fought Sunday at 190 pounds, 20 pounds more than Diaz's listed weight.

Nate Diaz has apparently set a date for his UFC return.

Diaz posted a picture Wednesday on Instagram, saying "Defending in December." Damon Martin of MMA Fighting reported the welterweight has "several high-profile options” for a potential bout to cap the year.

Diaz lost via unanimous decision to Leon Edwards at UFC 263 in June and has dropped three of his last four fights overall.

While Edwards clearly beat Diaz on the cards, Diaz fought valiantly for all five rounds and nearly knocked Edwards out in the fifth. It was a quintessential Diaz bout. It didn't matter that he lost because the crowd was screaming for Diaz when the final bell sounded.

Dustin Poirier has been mentioned as a potential opponent for Diaz given their war of words  on social media. Poirier has beaten Conor McGregor twice this year and has earned a title shot, so Diaz might be a little below him on the pecking order at this point. However, the two have an unfinished score to settle after a bout scheduled for 2018 was called off. 

“Wolf tickets. … You know how these negotiations go,” Poirier said on The MMA Hour. “Unless they’re talking to him and they said something ... Nothing’s been offered to me at all. I haven’t spoken to the UFC. I can’t say the same for Nate, for Nathaniel. But like I said, I think they will call me soon.”