It was only a few years ago that Nate Diaz, the season five winner of The Ultimate Fighter, looked to be one the more promising contenders in the lightweight division. Impressive victories over veterans Kurt Pellegrino and Josh Neer propelled the Stockton native to the upper echelon of the division. However, consecutive losses to Clay Guida and Joe Stevenson ultimately sent Diaz back to the bottom of the heap.
A few fights later, the Cesar Gracie product would try his hand at the welterweight class, where dominating performances against Rory Markham and Marcus Davis were diminished with back-to-back defeats against top-competition in Dong Hyun Kim and Rory MacDonald. Diaz’ 2-3 run in his last five fights is deceiving of the level of skill that the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu officionado presents. It’s become apparent that against mid-tier competition, the TUF vet will starch most, but against the savvy veterans is where Diaz has struggled.
Against former lightweight kingpin Takanori Gomi, who the BJJ brown belt faces come this Saturday at UFC 135, Diaz can now exploit the potential he possesses as a soon-to-be top-level-competitor.
Moving back to his natural weight of 155 pounds, Diaz meets the former PRIDE champion on the main card for the pay-per-view event. It’s an early candidate for “Fight of the Night,” as both fighters keep a frantic pace. Couple with Diaz’s game attitude stepping into the cage and Gomi’s knockout power, it’s a promising fight that may exceed expectations.
The Californian has a long-reach, underrated stand-up arsenal which mirrors that of his brother, former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz, and of course has his submission skills to rely on if he should be taken to the ground.
Against larger opponents in the welterweight class, it was often difficult for the 26-year-old to bring the fight to the mat. Now being the larger man, standing at a whopping 6’0″, those same problems will be neutralized.
Setting a pace that most opponents cant match, the well-conditioned Diaz will likely walk away with a win over the proverbial Japanese legend. As of right now, Nate is just a lauded commodity in the UFC. More talented than most, this could be the welcoming party that Diaz deserves as a re-entrance back into the lightweight class.
He finds himself at the last rung of a long ladder, but the organization has proven their faith in the colorful fighter by pitting him on a championship-headlined pay-per-view event, hoping to propel him back to the top where he belongs.
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