Nick Díaz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Nick Diaz | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Nickname | Diablo |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg) |
| Nationality |  American |
| Born | August 2, 1983 |
| Fighting out of | Stockton, California |
| Town of birth | Stockton, California |
| Fighting style | Freestyle |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Wins | 14 |
| By knockout | 7 |
| By submission | 5 |
| Losses | 6 |
| Draws | 0 |
Nicholas Robert Díaz (born August 2, 1983 in Stockton, California) is an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. Díaz is a former WEC and IFC Welterweight Champion with a professional record of 14 wins and 6 losses. He is a student of Cesar Gracie, a member of the famous Gracie family that has helped bring Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to the forefront of martial arts in the United States. Diaz has recently been promoted to brown belt status under Gracie. Diaz is currently signed with Gracie Fighting Championships and will be fighting Thomas Denny on January 20, 2007.
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[edit] Mixed martial arts career
After years of practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with Cesar Gracie, Diaz became a professional mixed martial arts fighter in 2001 and won his first fight, submitting Mike Wick with a triangle choke at IFC Warriors Challenge 15. Diaz would become a champion in just his second professional fight, decisioning Chris Lytle for the IFC United States Welterweight Title in July 2002.
Diaz was invited to participate in Ultimate Athlete's King of the Mountain single-night tournament two months later. He won his first two fights but eventually lost in the finals to Jeremy Jackson by TKO. Diaz would fight in Warriors Quest and Shooto before winning the WEC's Welterweight Title in 2003, submitting Joe Hurley with a Kimura.
Diaz then returned to defend his IFC Welterweight belt against the man that defeated him one year earlier, Jeremy Jackson. This time around it was Diaz who was able to get the win, winning by TKO in the first round. Taking notice of his success, the UFC signed Diaz over the summer and he made his debut at UFC 44, completing the trilogy against Jeremy Jackson and submitting him with an armbar in the last round of the fight.
He returned to the Octagon at UFC 47, set to take on highly-touted welterweight Robbie Lawler. Lawler was a heavy favorite coming into the fight but it was Diaz who took the offensive, chasing Lawler around the cage for the majority of the bout. It was in the second round where Diaz taunted Lawler in an attempt to get him to come after him. The move worked as Lawler swing wildly at him and missed, allowing Diaz to connect with a right cross that knocked out Lawler.
Diaz was matched up with Karo Parisyan at UFC 49, but ended up losing a hard-fought split decision. He rebounded with wins over Drew Fickett at UFC 51 and Koji Oishi at UFC 53 before things started falling apart for Diaz. He ended up losing three consecutive fights in the UFC to Diego Sanchez, Joe Riggs, and Sean Sherk respectively. Diaz's inconsistency resulted in the UFC releasing during the spring of 2006.
He returned to his hometown of Stockton and participated in the International Cage Fighting Organization's inaugural event, defeating Ray Steinbess by unanimous decision. Diaz began searching over the summer for another fight when he received an unexpected call from the UFC to fill in for an ill Thiago Alves at UFC 62. Diaz took advantage of the opportunity, submitting Josh Neer in the third round. Seemingly back in the UFC, Diaz stopped Gleison Tibau with strikes at UFC 65. However even after the win, Diaz decided to sign with the Gracie Fighting Championships and leave the UFC who have scheduled him to fight Thomas Denny on January 20th.
[edit] MMA record
| Result | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Notes |
| Win | Gleison Tibau | TKO (Strikes) | UFC 65-Bad Intentions | 11/18/2006 | 2 | 2:27 | |
| Win | Josh Neer | Submission (Kimura) | UFC 62-Liddell vs Sobral | 8/26/2006 | 3 | 1:42 | |
| Win | Ray Steinbeiss | Decision | ICFO 1-Stockton | 5/13/2006 | 3 | N/A | |
| Loss | Sean Sherk | Decision (Unanimous) | UFC 59-Reality Check | 4/15/2006 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Loss | Joe Riggs | Decision (Unanimous) | UFC 57-Liddell vs Couture 3 | 2/4/2006 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Loss | Diego Sanchez | Decision (Unanimous) | UFC Ultimate Fighter 2 Finale | 11/5/2005 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Win | Koji Oishi | KO (Punches) | UFC 53-Heavy Hitters | 6/4/2005 | 1 | 1:24 | |
| Win | Drew Fickett | TKO (Strikes) | UFC 51-Super Saturday | 2/5/2005 | 1 | 4:40 | |
| Loss | Karo Parisyan | Decision (Split) | UFC 49-Unfinished Business | 8/21/2004 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Win | Robbie Lawler | KO (Punches) | UFC 47-It's On | 4/2/2004 | 2 | 1:31 | |
| Win | Jeremy Jackson | Submission (Armbar) | UFC 44-Undisputed | 9/26/2003 | 3 | 2:04 | |
| Win | Jeremy Jackson | TKO | IFC WC 18-Big Valley Brawl | 7/19/2003 | 1 | 4:17 | Defended IFC United States Welterweight Title |
| Win | Joe Hurley | Submission (Kimura) | WEC 6-Return of a Legend | 3/27/2003 | 1 | 1:55 | Won WEC Welterweight Title |
| Loss | Kuniyoshi Hironaka | Decision (Split) | Shooto-2002 Year-End Show | 12/14/2002 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Win | Harris Sarmiento | TKO (Towel) | Warriors Quest 8 -Young Guns | 10/24/2002 | 2 | 1:47 | |
| Loss | Jeremy Jackson | TKO (Punches) | UA 4-King of the Mountain | 9/28/2002 | 1 | 0:49 | |
| Win | Adam Lynn | Submission (Armbar) | UA 4-King of the Mountain | 9/28/2002 | 1 | N/A | |
| Win | Blaine Tyler | TKO (Punches) | UA 4-King of the Mountain | 9/28/2002 | 2 | N/A | |
| Win | Chris Lytle | Decision | IFC WC 17-Warriors Challenge 17 | 7/12/2002 | 3 | 5:00 | Won IFC United States Welterweight Title |
| Win | Mike Wick | Submission (Triangle Choke) | IFC WC 15-Warriors Challenge 15 | 8/31/2001 | 1 | 3:43 |
