After the dust settles from any professional prize fight, there is a natural tendency for the fans of the man who lost to try and make sense of it all in any way that they can.
This usually takes the form of finger pointing, excuse making and all the normal actions associated with disappointment and denial.
I know because I have been there, just like every other fight fan.
After Sugar Ray Leonard pulled off a huge upset over Marvin Hagler, I was in denial, looking for any reason or excuse as to how it happened.
The truth is, Hagler gave the early rounds away to Leonard simply because he thought he could take him out at any time. Then when Hagler finally started fighting, Leonard had already found his groove, and it was simply too late.
Now after UFC 143, the fans of Nick Diaz are taking to the Internet, discussing the way he was “robbed.” That is what we expect of fight fans.
But I find it odd they see Diaz as a man who can suddenly contend with good wrestlers. He has not fought a single good wrestler since he left the company in 2006. Not a single one.
And yet his fans are true believers. They seem to think that fighters like Josh Koscheck and Jon Fitch would be good comeback fights for Diaz, enabling him to get some wins under his belt and start the climb again.
It seems like religion is not dead after all, because their faith in the unseen is inspiring.
If anything had been clear after UFC 143, I thought it was that Diaz is still the same fighter he was back in 2006. The only difference is that his striking is better and his jiu-jitsu is better. He was on a specific road back then, looking to become a specific kind of fighter, and he has grown into that role just about as well as anyone can.
But he still has fundamental holes in his game: no head movement or any real sense of defense, no takedown ability (at least not of the level needed in the UFC) and it would be contrary to our experience to believe that he has turned himself into a fighter who can deal with good wrestlers, since we haven’t seen proof of it yet.
But his fans, they are keeping the faith. They don’t need proof, they’ve got religion.
And you know what?
That ain’t such a bad thing.
I would be happy to pay money to see Nick Diaz fight just the way he is, against whomever, over paying money to watch many other fighters out there.
For me, Diaz reminds me a great deal of Arturo Gatti when it comes to how he fights. Like Gatti, Diaz is a highlight reel on two feet. Like Gatti, Diaz has consistently been involved with some of the most exciting fights in recent years in MMA. Like Gatti, Diaz is not the best fighter in his division, but no one cares about that if they are watching the Fight of the Year.
Diaz needs to keep fighting. So what if he never wins the UFC title? Chances are he won’t—he simply isn’t that dynamic of a fighter, and there are too many good wrestlers in his division. But that’s OK, because the fans remember the fights more than anything else.
Nick Diaz probably won’t ever be the UFC champion, but the people’s champion?
If he keeps on fighting like he has in the past, then that is one title no one will ever take away from him.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com