I am a big brother. When you are a big brother it is natural to want to defend your kid brother when he gets into trouble or gets his butt kicked on the playground. What happens though if your little brother followed in your footsteps and became a professional mixed martial arts fighter in the UFC and part of his job is possibly getting his butt kicked, do you still have to “big brother” him and call out someone who kicked his ass or talked a bit of smack before and after a fight? If the last name is Diaz, the answer is yes!
Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal recently stepped into the Octagon at UFC 244 and fought for The B.M.F (Baddest Mother Fucker) Belt. Masvidal took home the win via 3rd round TKO (doctor’s stoppage for cuts) and is now the BMF. While many didn’t like the way the fight ended, it is what it is and now we move forward.
Nick, however, doesn’t like the way Masvidal said he was going to baptize his younger brother. In an interview that was pre-recorded for ESPN with Ariel Helwani, which I’m still trying to figure out why they aired it, Diaz was extra incoherent and jumping all over the place from one topic to the next, never actually finishing a thought or making any kind of valid point.
The one thing he made clear was he wanted to fight Masvidal and avenge his brother’s loss. Something by the way I don’t think he will be able to do.
Having not stepped foot inside the octagon since 2015 in a fight he lost to Anderson Silva, although both participants ended up failing drug tests so it was ruled a no contest, but none the less he lost, which means his last victory came in 2011 to the already broken at the time BJ Penn.
I understand the desire to defend his baby brother as he(Nick) referred to him(Nate), however, I don’t think the older Diaz brother at this point in his life is a better fighter than the younger Diaz brother, meaning if the fight to be booked, it will be Masvidal 2 – Diaz Brothers 0.
Over the last 5 years, Nick Diaz has had run-ins with the law over alleged domestic violence,( which he was cleared of) whenever you see him on his Instagram page he has a drink in one hand and he’s smoking a blunt with the other.
At one point in his career Diaz was a dangerous fighter, today this version of Nick Diaz that was paraded around at UFC 244 and embarrassed by a pre-recorded interview that ESPN in my opinion never should have aired, isn’t that same dangerous fighter. In my opinion, he’s a former fighter who is enjoying the post-fight or life, and maybe just a little too much if I’m being honest.
I am not a doctor nor do I ever claim to be, however, with my years of dealing with fighters and people in general Diaz comes across to me as a functioning alcoholic, and I believe he is showing some early signs of CTE.
Both of the Diaz brothers have never been very eloquent when a microphone is put in their face. They have always come across as tough guys with limited vocabularies who are probably stoned when being interviewed, and not concerned with how anybody perceives them, which I respect the hell out of by the way. They have always been themselves, and have never given in to the corporate machine known as the UFC. They’ve always done it their way.
This interview that we just saw with Nick Diaz was different, and I’m not the only one that is saying that. He was really bizarre for lack of a better word, bizarre even for a Diaz brother, which is saying something.
I think Nick Diaz needs to worry about Nick Diaz right now before he thinks about taking on somebody like Masvidal who is on a run like he’s never seen in his career and will show no mercy once the door to the octagon closes.
Many people got very excited when Diaz said he wanted to return to fighting. I understand the attraction, however, those that want to see him fight want to see the old Nick Diaz, and that guy, in my opinion, is long gone.
Christopher James has been in the MMA industry for 15 years, Working as a ring announcer for promotions like the XFC, Island Fights, Combat Night and Fight Nights Global during his career. Chris’ love for the sport and the athletes that partake in it led him to writing and doing face to face interviews with the athletes he admired and respected. Chris isn’t conventional by any stretch of the imagination, he has his own style, and takes pride in not being a “cookie-cutter” member of the media. Unique and sometimes controversial takes are what he brings to the table, forcing folks to think a little differently about the world of MMA. He also has a love for music as he has been a dj for 25 years and his love for music gets brought to the MMA world when he gets his guests to sing on his weekly show Cage Side with Christopher James which can be seen Wednesday nights on FACEBOOK LIVE, and soon via podcast.