MONTREAL — The rules Nick Diaz lives by are a bit different than the principles that most people adhere to in their everyday lives. We were all certain of that fact before he dropped yet another bomb on us at the post-UFC 158 press conference.
Fresh off his five-round loss to UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, Diaz took to the microphone and let the assembled press in on a little secret: “I can’t be jumping teams. I just have to invest a little bit more, now that I have a little bit more money. You know what? I’ve never paid taxes in my life. I’m probably going to go to jail.”
That little tidbit left many of us inside the Bell Centre wondering and perhaps hoping that this wasn’t true. If there’s one group of people that will get their money from you, and if not their money, then a little bit of your time, it’s the Internal Revenue Service.
After the fight was over, UFC president Dana White offered his take on the subject.
“Nick wanted a shot at the UFC title, and he got paid a lot of money for it,” White said. “He better go pay his taxes when he gets his check. That’s no shit.
“He came out here publicly tonight and said he’s never paid taxes in his life? Holy shit. Somebody better handle that with this check and make sure this kid doesn’t end up with nothing.”
The UFC president went on to say that he may get involved in seeing that Diaz does pay his taxes. “There’s a guy I’ve been talking to—he’s Nate and Nick’s lawyer; he seems like a decent guy who’s looking out for them. I’ll probably give this guy a call and tell him that Nick said he’s never paid his taxes in his life and you might want to start working on that Sunday.”
As for how much money Diaz has made, his UFC 143 loss to Carlos Condit earned him $200,000 in salary. Odds are good that he earned the same amount or perhaps more for his fight against St-Pierre.
White also made his feelings on the IRS clear: “I would rather have f***ing ninjas after me than the IRS. I’d rather have the mob after me than the IRS. They don’t play.”
There’s never a dull moment with Diaz, and if what he said is true, don’t expect this story to quietly fade into the background.
All quotes obtained firsthand.
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