– Diaz has signed a new eight-fight deal with Zuffa, which allows him to fight for both the UFC and Strikeforce. But the plan for Diaz isn’t necessarily to jump back and forth between promotions. Asked if the new deal marked the end of Diaz’s run in Strikeforce, Gracie replied, “Hopefully. If he’s back in Strikeforce, I would imagine that’s because he lost his next fight.”
(Post-fight press conferences are about to get even more uncomfortable for Ariel Helwani. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle)
– Diaz has signed a new eight-fight deal with Zuffa, which allows him to fight for both the UFC and Strikeforce. But the plan for Diaz isn’t necessarily to jump back and forth between promotions. Asked if the new deal marked the end of Diaz’s run in Strikeforce, Gracie replied, “Hopefully. If he’s back in Strikeforce, I would imagine that’s because he lost his next fight.”
– Diaz won’t be able to pursue a boxing career while under contract. “He obviously had to be compensated for not boxing and taking this fight instead,” Gracie said. (Points on the pay-per-view, perhaps?)
– There’s still no word on what, if anything, will happen with Diaz’s Strikeforce welterweight title in the aftermath of the GSP fight.
So, will Diaz be able to “play the game” enough to last eight fights under the stricter watch of Dana White and the UFC? Or will it be hospital fights and in-cage riots until he’s eventually booted? Personally, I wouldn’t expect Diaz to suddenly cheer up just because he’s been given everything he’s wanted. Can’t wait to see the next installment of this storyline…
It’s hard to imagine it now, but back when UFC president Dana White first used the phrase “business as usual” (many, many times) to describe what life would look like for Strikeforce after the Zuffa purchase, it wasn’t a punchline. He meant it. Sort of…
It’s hard to imagine it now, but back when UFC president Dana White first used the phrase “business as usual” (many, many times) to describe what life would look like for Strikeforce after the Zuffa purchase, it wasn’t a punchline. He meant it. Sort of. Maybe he even believed it, or at least he expected us to believe it.
That lasted about fifteen minutes.
Now, with the announcement that Strikeforce champ Nick Diaz will face Georges St. Pierre at UFC 137 this fall, we can finally put it to bed for good and forget we ever even considered taking it seriously. Snatching Strikeforce’s champ and signing him to a new contract so he can fight the UFC champ? Not business as usual. Not even close. And we should all be very, very glad.
After UFC 129, when White was asked whether a GSP-Diaz fight was even possible under the current contracts, the big bossman replied that he could probably do whatever he wanted to do with Diaz – if he wanted it badly enough.
Translation: if fans get vocal enough about wanting to see this fight and no other, we’ll move mountains to make it happen if we have to.
Fans were, so the UFC did. While a GSP-Anderson Silva superfight might get some people’s motors running, putting it off in order to allow St. Pierre a chance to cement his welterweight status once and for all is the move that makes more sense. GSP-Diaz is the fight that feels like it absolutely has to happen, and now it will.
Sadly, such is not always the case in combat sports.
For instance, remember back when Diaz versus “Mayhem” Miller seemed like the bout that made the most sense for Strikeforce? You know, since Miller was an MTV star who’d been jumped by Diaz and crew on live network television, and since the two couldn’t be in the same building without wanting to murder one another?
That fight would have promoted itself, but Strikeforce couldn’t make it happen. Between discrepancies over the weight the two would fight at, and CBS’ irrational hatred for Miller, nothing ever got done. It was a perfect moment, but the moment passed with nothing to show for it.
Or take Diaz’s recent boxing ultimatum. Unless the UFC gave them St. Pierre, Diaz’s manager, Cesar Gracie, told MMA Fighting in early May, his fighter was going to take his talents to the boxing ring for a bout with Jeff Lacy. Whether you think trading leather with the big gloves would have been a good idea or a horrible one for Diaz, in the end it was his decision to make. Strikeforce had given him a contract that allowed for it, so who was going to stop him?
Obviously, it doesn’t serve Zuffa’s interest to let Diaz get punched in the face by a washed-up former boxing champ while the UFC welterweight champ suffers from a dearth of compelling challengers, so it did what it had to do to talk him off the ledge. As Gracie put it in an interview with USA Today, the UFC “compensated [Diaz] for not boxing,” and in the end it got what it wanted.
More importantly, the fans got what they wanted. The cross-promotional champion-versus-champion fight that seemed so unrealistic that it was hardly even worth talking about a year ago was now a reality with a date and a venue. While we can’t pretend there are no down sides to having so much power in the MMA world consolidated under one Las Vegas roof, it’s moves like this that remind us of the considerable upsides.
If Strikeforce were still its own, independent organization, sure, that would make for better negotiating positions for fighters. It would give them more options, especially in the early or late stages of their careers (see also: Dan Henderson).
At the same time, then we’d probably never see Diaz fight St. Pierre. We’d probably never get a chance to find out who the best welterweight fighter in the world was. We’d just guess and speculate and argue, which is what we’ve been doing for the past few years, and – honestly? – I think we’ve gotten all the fun we’re going to get out of that exercise.
That was the old business as usual. This is the new one. And while it’s not without its potential pitfalls, so far there’s also a lot to like.
For as long as many can remember, Georges St-Pierre has been on top in the welterweight division. He is a three-time UFC welterweight champion (once was interim), and is currently riding a nine-fight winning streak. He has defeated everyone put in fron…
For as long as many can remember, Georges St-Pierre has been on top in the welterweight division. He is a three-time UFC welterweight champion (once was interim), and is currently riding a nine-fight winning streak. He has defeated everyone put in front of him and has literally cleaned out the entire UFC welterweight division.
There is one thing that GSP has not encountered, a man that will bring the fight to him. A fighter that has the ability to not only test his cardio, but also every aspect of the fight game.
On June 1, UFC president Dana White made the announcement that GSP’s next opponent would be Nick Diaz.
Diaz brings all of those problems to the table.
Diaz is the current Strikeforce welterweight champion and is on a 10-fight winning streak. He is overlooked by many and is truly an unappreciated fighter. Diaz is known for finding out what his opponent is best at and defeating them at their own game.
Has Diaz faced the level of fighters that GSP has faced? No. One thing is that most recently Diaz scored a TKO on Paul Daley, and though people say who cares, it has a significant meaning to it.
If people think back, Daley fought Josh Koscheck and if he won, he would face GSP for the welterweight title and also be a coach on The Ultimate Fighter. Daley has had one TKO loss in his career, and it was due to a thumb injury.
Daley is a power-puncher and is overall a very good striker and everyone remembers what he did to Martin Kampmann. Diaz beat Daley at his own game, and was the first man to win by the method of TKO.
Should Diaz have had to face a couple of guys in the UFC welterweight division before getting this fight? In all truths, yes, but this fight is such a marketable fight that at this moment putting this fight at risk at not taking place is not a smart business move.
The fans wanted this fight and the UFC delivered. That being said, is this the fight that opens the door to more crossover fights? It almost has to mean that.
There is virtually no reason to leave some of these bigger names in Strikeforce waiting on an opponent. Zuffa, LLC, in a whole, is in a great position at the moment because the fights and money that can be made is just literally a fantasy that can now come true.
Diaz vs. St-Pierre, is more of a marketed fight than a deserved fight, but how will it go?
St-Pierre is an extremely talented technical striker. His kicks are top notch, and his punches are spot on. His main problem is that he really doesn’t possess the one-punch knockout power, but good thing for him, neither does Diaz.
Diaz possesses very good boxing, he always pushes the pace in fights and his cardio is never in question. GSP has the advantage in the wrestling department, but does he really want to risk Diaz being on his back?
In the Shields fight, St-Pierre kept it standing, the only problem is that Diaz is a much better striker.
Every fight it is stated that this opponent is the guy that will dethrone GSP, but in this case, Diaz is truly the biggest threat. How will GSP be able to handle all of the vocal taunts that Diaz will throw his way?
This fight is just overall a great matchup and has many potential outcomes.
Anyone can call a winner for this fight, but let’s keep it real. Actions speak louder than words. Prepare for war everyone, because this fight will not disappoint.
Kevin James Gets the OK to Use the UFC brand in His Upcoming FilmBleacher Report’s Roland Riso has the story:Hailing from the hit TV show, “King of Queens”, actor Kevin James’ latest venture is a film revolving around music and mixed martial arts.&n…
Kevin James Gets the OK to Use the UFC brand in His Upcoming Film
Bleacher Report’s Roland Riso has the story:
Hailing from the hit TV show, “King of Queens”, actor Kevin James’ latest venture is a film revolving around music and mixed martial arts. To add support and credibility to the upcoming project, Ultimate Fighting Championship president, Dana White, gave his consent to use the UFC brand in the movie, slated for release in 2012.
According to MMAWeekly’s Damon Martin, “Here Comes The Boom” is about James’ character, Scott Voss, a high school science teacher, who moonlights as an MMA fighter, in order to save the school’s financially struggling music program.
Along with the comedian, the movie also stars Salma Hayek and Henry Winkler. Also casted for this comedy, as denoted on IMDB.com, are UFC notables: commentator Joe Rogan, ring announcer Bruce Buffer, ring girl Arianny Celeste and former champion Bas Rutten.
Until now, Zuffa LLC, owner of the Ultimate Fighting Championship promotion, has never given anyone the rights to use their trademarked name, since obtaining the UFC in 2001. Kevin James, a longtime mixed martial arts fan, called White directly for permission when production began.
Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz: Reactions from TwitterBleacher Report’s Sal DeRose reports:If you haven’t heard by now about Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz at UFC 137, well you must live under a rock.The second UFC president, Dana White, announced t…
Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz: Reactions from Twitter
Bleacher Report’s Sal DeRose reports:
If you haven’t heard by now about Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz at UFC 137, well you must live under a rock.
The second UFC president, Dana White, announced that the fight would be on for UFC 137, everybody took to their Twitter accounts to post what they thought about the fight.
Here is a look at what some fighters posted on their Twitter accounts, some funny, some very bland.
We’ll kick this off with a fighter who will be fighting on the UFC 131 card next week, heavyweight Joey Beltran. @mexicutioner760:
” @danawhite: U wanted it! U GOT IT!!! GSP vs DIAZ Oct 29th UFC 137 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.”Im so excited im gonna sh!t myself!”
This one was my personal favorite from DaMarques Johnson who fought on The Ultimate Fighter 9 and lost in the finals to James Wilks. @DaMarques_UFC:
BJ Penn Looks Forward to the day the UFC Heads to his Home State of HawaiiBleacher Report’s Mike Hodges has the story:The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s international expansion into foreign territory has generated a lot of success for the promotion …
BJ Penn Looks Forward to the day the UFC Heads to his Home State of Hawaii
Bleacher Report’s Mike Hodges has the story:
The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s international expansion into foreign territory has generated a lot of success for the promotion over the past couple of years.
And if UFC lightweight BJ Penn has his way, the company could be making its way into his homeland in the near future.
Penn was recently featured in a news report conducted by Hawaiian News Now, and the Hilo native said his dream of fighting in Hawaii couldn’t happen sooner rather than later.
“Our Governor, Neil Abercrombie, wants to bring the UFC down. He’s willing to do whatever it takes, and I think now, maybe, they’re just looking for a venue,” Penn told Hawaiian News Now.
However, Penn’s active pursuit of bringing mixed martial arts to Hawaii would happen without some problems along the way.
He said one the problems is there is no venue to host the event, and with Hilo being of the few places to law a stadium, it makes it difficult to host an event.
It’s hard to imagine it now, but back when UFC president Dana White first used the phrase 
If you haven’t heard by now about Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz at