Author: admin

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Chael Sonnen is full of praise for the “unintentional genius” Nate Diaz.

Former UFC middleweight Chael Sonnen has praised Nate Diaz for being an “unintentional genius.”

Diaz’s stock went up massively earlier this month when he defeated Anthony Pettis by decision at UFC 241. Calling out Jorge Masvidal after the fight, UFC president Dana White finally admitted The Ultimate Fighter Season 5 winner is now a “needle mover.”

Talking on a recent edition of his “You’re Welcome” podcast, Sonnen believes there is nothing pre-planned about Diaz, he’s admired for being “real” and “authentic.”

“I just think when you look at somebody like Nate Diaz, who unintentionally, many people will believe he’s a marketing genius and many people will believe he just stumbled into something. I believe he’s an unintentional genius. What he does is absolutely brilliant, I just don’t think there was a strategy ahead of time.”

The fight with Pettis was Diaz’s first since losing to Conor McGregor in their rematch at UFC 202 in August 2016. Diaz’s future seemed uncertain in his three years away from the cage, but it’s clear the 34-year-old has hit superstardom in the UFC, and Sonnen feels it’s because he is a “real guy” with “real problems.”

“One thing about him is he’s real. He’s authentic. When he speaks and he says something, there’s no tongue-in-cheek. There’s no winking, there’s no trying to get eyeballs and sell pay-per-views. There’s a real guy with real guy problems, from a real tough city in a real tough sport that’s trying to get by.

“There’s just something there that people can relate to and it’s special. It’s not overly creative, it’s not manufactured in any way. It’s basic, it’s humble, it’s clean, it’s honest. It’s compelling.”

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s featherweight champion Cristiane Justino, who rose to fame under the Strikeforce banner, is expected to announce her new home within the next 30 days … or less.

That’s according to a new interview “Cyborg” posted earlier this week on YouTube (transcribed by MMA Fighting). The front runners are Bellator MMA, ONE Championship, and RIZIN Fighting Federation.

“I believe I’ll sign my new contract in less than 30 days,” Cyborg said. “I’ll be online to tell everybody about my new place where Cyborg will be welcome. I have to thank Dana (White) for sending me a letter two days after my win. It really helped me to negotiate. I’ll be back to Brazil soon, for sure. It’s part of my plan for the new contract I sign and I am very happy.”

White wasted no time releasing Justino after this unfortunate incident.

Working in Bellator’s favor is the fact that promotion president, Scott Coker, is the same promoter who helped Justino establish herself as one of the all-time greats, thanks to a women’s division that crowned her champion and provided marquee fights against the likes of Gina Carano, among others.

“I’ve passed through many cycles already and in a cycle there is always beginning, middle, and end,” Justino said. “Invicta had an end, Bellator – no, [laughing] not Bellator yet – the UFC had a beginning, middle, and end. Strikeforce. So I’m starting a new cycle. I’m happy, anxious, looking forward to starting. It’s good to start new projects and I’m looking forward to that.”

Unlike UFC, which still does not have enough featherweight fighters to populate its official rankings, Bellator has a legitimate roster of 145-pound combatants, enough to keep “Cyborg” busy for the second half of her combat sports career.