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Nick Diaz didn’t train for ‘5 years’ ahead of UFC return fight with Robbie Lawler: ‘He was pressured into that’

Nick Diaz didn't train for 5 years for UFC return with Robbie Lawler he was pressured into that fight Slated to make another return to the Octagon in just a months’ time at UFC Abu Dhabi, former undisputed…

Slated to make another return to the Octagon in just a months’ time at UFC Abu Dhabi, former undisputed welterweight title challenger, Nick Diaz took part in no training regime for five years ahead of his clash with former champion, Robbie Lawler back in 2021, according to Jake Shields.

Diaz, a former welterweight title challenger under the banner of the UFC, is slated to make his comeback at UFC Abu Dhabi next month in the United Arab Emirates, taking on welterweight contender, Vicente Luque over the course of five rounds.

Nick Diaz UFC — Mandatory Credit: Zuffa LLC

Sidelined for the last three years, Nick Diaz snapped a six-year hiatus at UFC 266 in a rematch with former gold holder, Lawler, dropping a third round TKO loss to the former undisputed champion in the pair’s second time to share the Octagon together.

Nick Diaz teases massive fighting return Somebody is gonna pay very soon UFC — Mandatory Credit: Icon Sportswire

And despite appearing in much better shape – physically at least this time around for his return bout with Luque, which has been scrutinized by many within the community – including his former head coach, Cesar Gracie, Diaz at least had enjoyed some training for this return.

Nick Diaz had no training for 5 years ahead of Robbie Lawler rematch

And according to the above-mentioned, Shields, a long-time training partner of the Stockton veteran, who will train with the former WEC and Strikeforce champion in the coming weeks, Diaz didn’t train for over five years for his matchup with Lawler.

“He (Nick Diaz) didn’t train at all for the (Robbie) Lawler fight,” Jake Shields said on the JAXXON podcast. “That fight shouldn’t have happened in my opinion, I’m not gonna get into too many details, but I wasn’t very happy. I think he was kinda pressured into that so people could make money.”

“…I mean, the fact that he fought Robbie Lawler with zero training in five years, and like, I was freaked out watching that, I thought he was gonna get embarrassed, and he put on freaking war. He lost – but for a second, for two rounds I thought he might even come back and win, like holy sh*t – with no training. I think he can still go out there – it shows that he has the heart still and now he’s training – I can’t say how hard – I know that he’s training now. Hopefully I’ll get out there next week and push him.”

Are you excited for Nick Diaz’s return next month?

Nick Diaz’s ex-Coach concerned by UFC fight with Vicente Luque: ‘I wouldn’t have advised him to do this’

Ahead of his slated return next month in Abu Dhabi, Nick Diaz’s former head coach, Cesar Gracie has voiced…

Ahead of his slated return next month in Abu Dhabi, Nick Diaz’s former head coach, Cesar Gracie has voiced his concern for his former student ahead of his slated clash with Vicente Luque – insisting he would have advised the veteran against fighting that opponent, as well as competent overseas this late into his career.

Diaz, a former welterweight title challenger under the banner of the UFC, is slated to make his first outing inside the Octagon since taking on the retired former champion, Robbie Lawler back in 2021, dropping a third round TKO loss in the pair’s middleweight rematch.

Nick Diaz targeted UFC 300 comeback fight with Georges St-Pierre before booking Vicente Luque clash — Mandatory Credit: Zuffa LLC

And set to snap a three-year hiatus from the sport next month in the United Arab Emirates, it came as a surprise to fans that Diaz was booked to take on welterweight mainstay, Luque in a return to the division – with pundits and commenters alike suggesting he should take on fellow veteran, Tony Ferguson on the same card – who is also set to compete in Abu Dhabi.

Nick Diaz’s ex-coach shows concern for UFC Abu Dhabi booking

Posting some recent training footage ahead of his comeback to fighting, Nick Diaz’s former head coach in Stockton, the above-mentioned Gracie, voiced some concern for his long-time student, questioning why a pairing with Luque was booked.

Nick Diaz admits he knew he had it coming in UFC 266 return unprepared — Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez – USA TODAY Sports

“I’m not really involved in that fight,” Cesar Gracie told Submission Radio during a recent interview. “I’m gonna be perfectly honest with you, that wasn’t my idea. If I was advising Nick (Diaz), I wouldn’t have advised him to do that fight. It’s in Abu Dhabi, I wouldn’t advise to go fight overseas at this point. Especially [to fight] (Vicente) Luque – who is a very tough guy.”

“Nick is a tough guy, but it just doesn’t make that much sense to me where Nick is at in his career,” Gracie explained. “It’s not the fight I would have made, and don’t even know what’s going on with that fight, to be honest with you. It’s a toss-up what’s gonna happen. I don’t really see him training with fighters. And I don’t know what’s going on with that fight.”

Do you think Nick Diaz can beat Vicente Luque in the UAE next month?

Vicente Luque On How Experience Of Fighting Three UFC Fighters Should Help Him Against Nick Diaz: ‘Throw All Those Into A Blender…’

Vicente Luque recently expressed confidence that his past encounters with three seasoned UFC veterans have equipped him to manage the pressure in his upcoming fight against Nick Diaz. Luque is gearing up for a high-stakes showdown against former welterweight title challenger Diaz. This five-round bout will serve as the co-main event at UFC Fight Night […]

Continue Reading Vicente Luque On How Experience Of Fighting Three UFC Fighters Should Help Him Against Nick Diaz: ‘Throw All Those Into A Blender…’ at MMA News.

Vicente Luque recently expressed confidence that his past encounters with three seasoned UFC veterans have equipped him to manage the pressure in his upcoming fight against Nick Diaz.

Luque is gearing up for a high-stakes showdown against former welterweight title challenger Diaz. This five-round bout will serve as the co-main event at UFC Fight Night Abu Dhabi, scheduled for August 3 at the Etihad Arena.

Luque’s recent career has experienced significant ups and downs. Since April 2022, “The Silent Assassin”, known for his formidable and versatile fighting abilities, has managed to secure only one victory. That triumph came when he defeated Rafael Dos Anjos via unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 74 last August.

Before his victory, Luque endured consecutive defeats to Belal Muhammad and Geoff Neal. The loss to “Handz of Steel” was particularly significant as it marked the first knockout loss of his career and led to an injury that kept him out of action for almost a year.

The 32-year-old Brazilian is coming off a second-round knockout defeat against Joaquin Buckley this past March at UFC Fight Night Atlantic City. Despite this setback, Luque remains confident in his ability to turn his fortunes around.

Drawing on his past victories over several notable opponents, Luque believes that his experience and resilience will be key factors in his bout against the former Strikeforce welterweight champion…

Luque Trusts Experience To Overcome Diaz Challenge

During a recent interview with InsideFighting, “The Silent Assassin” was queried about his strategy for facing a high-profile opponent like Diaz.

Luque acknowledged that the intensity Diaz brings to fights is exceptionally different from that of other opponents. However, he expressed confidence that his victories over veterans like Tyron Woodley, Dos Anjos, and Bryan Barberena will provide him with the edge he needs on August 3.

“I think he’s a big name. I fought Woodley, I fought RDA, and these guys were big champions. They have big names, but I feel like the energy that Nick brings is different.”

“I think it’s a little bit different, and I don’t know if I would mix the experience that I have from fighting Woodley and RDA with the fight I had with Barberena. It’s kind of that, you know, throw all those into a blender, and you come out with something like Nick, a guy with big, a legend, but he’ll stand there in front of you and try to pressure you.”

The Brazilian also noted that the five-round matchup will work to his advantage against Diaz, who has been out of the octagon for an extended period of time.

“It’s gonna be five rounds, not gonna be three rounds. So it’s gonna be nice. I mean, if he can, what I’m gonna bring, and I think he can and I can take what he’s gonna bring, then we’re gonna put on a show for everyone.”

Diaz returned to active competition after a six-year hiatus, facing off against his former rival Robbie Lawler in a rematch at UFC 266 in September 2021. The 40-year-old Stockton native unexpectedly dropped to the canvas in the third round and chose not to continue, leading the referee to stop the fight.

Read More: Colby Covington Claims Nick Diaz Ducked Him But Will Not ‘Put Down The Diaz Brothers & Talk S**t About Them’

Continue Reading Vicente Luque On How Experience Of Fighting Three UFC Fighters Should Help Him Against Nick Diaz: ‘Throw All Those Into A Blender…’ at MMA News.

Colby Covington Reveals Nick Diaz Ducked Him But Will Not ‘Put Down The Diaz Brothers & Talk S**t About Them’

MMA legend Nick Diaz is set to return to the Octagon on August 3 when he faces Vicente Luque in Abu Dhabi. It has been three years since the Stockton original last competed in the UFC and that, in turn, was a comeback from a six-year hiatus. Before his fight with Robbie Lawler at UFC […]

Continue Reading Colby Covington Reveals Nick Diaz Ducked Him But Will Not ‘Put Down The Diaz Brothers & Talk S**t About Them’ at MMA News.

MMA legend Nick Diaz is set to return to the Octagon on August 3 when he faces Vicente Luque in Abu Dhabi.

It has been three years since the Stockton original last competed in the UFC and that, in turn, was a comeback from a six-year hiatus.

Before his fight with Robbie Lawler at UFC 266, Diaz was reportedly offered several opponents before the decision was made to run back his first clash with Lawler.

Colby Covington revealed in a recent interview with Submission Radio that he was one of the names in contention for a fight with Diaz – which would have surely been chaotic to say the least.

Colby Covington Says Nick Diaz ‘Ducked’ The Fight But He Has Nothing Bad To Say About Him

During the interview, Covington spoke about how there were talks of him facing off with Diaz back in 2021, with Madison Square Garden as a potential destination.

The former three-time UFC welterweight title challenger said that he understands why the UFC hasn’t attempted to revisit this fight after Diaz turned this option down.

“Unfortunately, he hasn’t been offered to me in about three years. The last time Hunter had called me with Nick Diaz’s name across my desk was when they offered me to him in Madison Square Garden about three years ago so, he turned down the fight, he didn’t want the fight so I think the UFC just knows that they can’t match that up.

“I mean, that’s the biggest mismatch in UFC history to give me a guy like Nick Diaz so it wouldn’t be doing the company any justice to put some guy that’s over the hill and past his prime versus the guy that’s in his prime and the best welterweight on earth right now, Colby Covington.

Covington also said that despite this and some comments that the Diaz brothers have made over the years, he has no hard feelings towards them after this fight didn’t come together.

He said that he even shared a moment with the elder Diaz following one of his fights where the leader of the “Nick Diaz Army” was very complimentary of his skills and career.

Covington states that despite Diaz being “scared” to fight him, he has nothing negative to say about one of MMA’s most iconic siblings.

“He knew at that time that I was the best welterweight on earth. He came up to me one time when I fought, after UFC Sacramento, and he’s like, ‘Yeah you’re the future of this division’ and showed me a lot of respect so I’m not going to put down the Diaz brothers and talk s*** about them.

“They’ve said some things about me but they’ve done great things in this sport and I’m not going to sit down and say anything bad about them but he did dodge the fight. He was scared to fight me and that’s facts, that’s truth.”

Continue Reading Colby Covington Reveals Nick Diaz Ducked Him But Will Not ‘Put Down The Diaz Brothers & Talk S**t About Them’ at MMA News.

Nick Diaz backed for win in UFC Abu Dhabi return: ‘He was looking good against Robbie Lawler’

Veteran fan-favorite, Nick Diaz has been backed to perform in his return to the Octagon later this summer ahead…

Veteran fan-favorite, Nick Diaz has been backed to perform in his return to the Octagon later this summer ahead of his fight with Vicente Luque at UFC Abu Dhabi – with bantamweight best, Sean O’Malley praising his performance last time out in his rematch against ex-champion, Robbie Lawler.

Diaz, a former welterweight title challenger under the banner of the UFC and gold holder whilst competing in the WEC (World Extreme Cagefighting) and Strikeforce, is slated to make his return at UFC Abu Dhabi in August, taking on Brazilian-American contender, Luque in a return to 170lbs to boot.

Sidelined for the last three years, Diaz most recently dropped a TKO retirement loss to former titleholder, Lawler in the pair’s rematch – snapping a six-year hiatus from combat sports in the process.

Nick Diaz backed for success in UFC Abu Dhabi return

And with much made about his booking against welterweight challenger, Luque – Diaz has been backed to perform to aplomb by the above-mentioned, O’Malley, who praised his display three years ago against Lawler.

“That’s so badass,” Sean O’Malley said on his podcast of Nick Diaz’s return to the UFC. “Nick Diaz? Definitely could have gave him a better match up. [Tony Ferguson] would have been perfect.”

“His fight with Robbie Lawler, he was looking f*cking good though,” O’Malley explained. “He looked good, he really did. Until he lost.”

Without a victory since 2011, Diaz most recent win came in the form of a unanimous decision win over former two-division champion, B.J. Penn – before going on to compete against former championship-winning trio, Carlos Condit, Georges St-Pierre, and Anderson Silva.

UFC Abu Dhabi takes place on August 3. from the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, UAE – with a potential bantamweight title eliminator between Cory Sandhagen, and Umar Nurmagomedov slated to take main event honors.

Do you think Nick Diaz can land success in his return to the Octagon this summer?

Daniel Cormier is not thrilled with Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque booking: ‘This is a much more dangerous fight’

Daniel Cormier is not thrilled with news of Nick Diaz’s return. Earlier this week, UFC CEO Dana White shocked…

Daniel Cormier is not thrilled with news of Nick Diaz’s return.

Earlier this week, UFC CEO Dana White shocked everyone when he revealed that the Stockton, California native would step back inside the Octagon for the first time since a 2021 scrap with ‘Ruthless’ Robbie Lawler. Diaz is set to square off with No. 14 ranked welterweight contender Vicente Luque on August 3 when the promotion delivers a star-studded Fight Night card in Abu Dhabi.

Sharing his thoughts on the announcement with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Cormier admitted to being initially excited by the news. After all, it’s not often that you get to see Nick Diaz strap on the four-ounce gloves.

“I was very shocked,” Cormier said. “After watching Nick Diaz compete the last time, I was like, ‘Okay, he’s done.’ But when I heard the news, I was excited! I got so excited because it’s like how often do we get an opportunity to see a guy that meant so much to us? I watched him in Strikeforce, I do all that.”

However, Cormier’s excitement quickly turned to worry after he realized who Diaz would be fighting.

“Now, the matchup, that’s a little worrisome for me because Robbie Lawler seemed to be at the same stage in his career as him. Vicente Luque is not there. This is a much more dangerous fight for Nick Diaz. I just hope that he shows a better form this time. Honestly, man, excitement because I get to see a guy that I’ve watched for a long time. Confusion in terms of who the matchup is. Tony Ferguson’s fighting on the card, too. Put them together. That makes more sense to me.”

Nick Diaz seeks his first win in more than a dozen years

After building an impressive 11-fight win streak, Diaz lost three straight between 2012 and 2015, coming up short against Carlos Condit, Georges St-Pierre, and Anderson Silva, though his fight against ‘The Spider’ was later overturned to a no contest after Silva tested positive for anabolic steroids.

Fans wouldn’t see Diaz return until eight years later when he booked a fight with UFC Hall of Famer Robbie Lawler at UFC 266. As excited as fans were to see the former Strikeforce titleholder back, his performance left a lot to be desired. After taking a beating in the first two rounds, Diaz threw in the towel 44 seconds into the third.

He’ll face an even tougher test this time out when he squares off with a top-15 contender who carries with him 19 career finishes against 22 total wins.