Nate Diaz explains why his performance in the Jake Paul fight left a little to be desired, and it involves four weeks of hard partying after a training camp injury.
Nate Diaz has a reputation for being one of the toughest fighters out there. But which Diaz are we expecting to see on July 6th when Nate fights Jorge Masvidal in an Anaheim boxing ring? The one who engaged in a legendary series of fights against Conor McGregor in 2016? Or the one who cruised to a listless decision loss against Jake Paul in 2023?
Paul has come out and mocked Diaz for his performance in their boxing match, saying the Stockton fighter was the weakest puncher he’d ever faced. In a new interview with ESPN, Diaz gave some eyebrow raising reasons as to why he wasn’t punching up to his usual level.
“For one, I was injured and I couldn’t even really throw a punch,” he said. “I was f—ed up. And for two, he was the easiest fight I ever had. That was the longest fight at the heaviest weightclass I ever had. Never got tired. Never got hurt. Nothing.”
“Even when I got knocked down, I think it was timing because it didn’t hurt, I got up like ‘You good?’ ‘Oh, I’m fine.’ I thought he was pretty weak himself.”
There have been several fuzzy reports on Diaz’s injury at the time of the Paul fight, with descriptions ranging from a bum shoulder to pinched back nerve. And now Nate is sharing some new info on how he decided to handle the setback.
“I went on a four week bender before the fight,” Diaz said. “We trained hard for months on months and we were over it, me and my whole team. So I sat back and started kicking it. I was over training.”
“If it was a scary opponent, you wouldn’t allow yourself to do that. But it was just easy to go to sleep at night fighting that guy. But it was good that it happened like that because now it’s necessary to work out, get disciplined, and go back and whip his ass.”
“I’m the weakest puncher, and you’re the one that wanted to fight 30 pounds over my original weight division?” Diaz asked. “You think I was just trying to sit there and just knock you out? Like throw as hard of punches as I can? I was just getting through that fight because I was half way to my potential that day.”
As for how his training camp has been going for the Jorge Masvidal fight?
“A lot better than the last fight, that’s for damn sure!” he exclaimed.
Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvial: “Last Man Standing” goes down Saturday July 6th from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Fans can watch at home for just $49.95.