Nick Diaz
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 | Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Boxing |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Wins | 15 |
| By knockout | 7 |
| By submission | 6 |
| Losses | 6 |
| Draws | 0 |
Nicholas Robert Diaz (born August 2, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He is also a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt and a professional boxer. Díaz is a former WEC and IFC Welterweight champion with a professional MMA record of 15 wins and 6 losses. In the past, he has competed several times in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Diaz is currently signed with the Japanese promotion Pride Fighting Championships. Diaz recently beat Takanori Gomi in fight being considered Fight of the Year according to mmanews.com. After this fight Diaz tested positive for using marijuana. He has also signed with EliteXC.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Diaz was born in Stockton, California and went to Tokay High School in Lodi for one year before dropping out. While a freshman, he was a member of the swimming team. Diaz has stated in the past that swimming is one of the main reasons why his cardio is so impressive during his fights. Diaz has also said on multiple occasions that he had a hard childhood and grew up without having his biological father around his own family.
Diaz originally started training in martial arts because he was being bullied by other teenagers who were bigger in size than he was. He then watched the UFC for the first time and soon wanted to be able to fight in the organization. When he is not fighting or training, Diaz is currently a mixed martial arts instructor at Pacific Coast Martial Arts in Stockton. He has a younger brother named Nathan, who is also a professional MMA fighter. He also regularly competes in triathlons as part of his training. Diaz still resides in his hometown of Stockton and is currently single.
[edit] Mixed martial arts career
[edit] Early Stages
After years of practicing various combats sports and martial arts, Diaz became a professional mixed martial arts fighter in 2001 just after his 18th birthday 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 at IFC Warriors Challenge 17.
Diaz was then invited to participate in Ultimate Athlete's King of the Mountain, a single-night tournament that took place 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 against Harris "Hitman" Sarmiento and Kuniyoshi Hironaka respectfully before winning the WEC's Welterweight Title in 2003 at WEC 6, submitting Joe Hurley with a kimura.
Diaz returned to defend his IFC Welterweight belt against the man that defeated him one year earlier, Jeremy Jackson at IFC Warriors Challenge 18. 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.
[edit] Becoming a star
Diaz 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 swung wildly at him and missed, allowing Diaz to connect with a right cross that knocked out Lawler.
Diaz was then 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 losing for the second time in the UFC at the hands of The Ultimate Fighter Middleweight winner Diego Sanchez at The Ultimate Fighter 2 Finale.
The two came into the fight with a good amount of bad blood between them. They reportedly exchanged heated e-mails before and after the official signing of the fight, which was spurred on by Diaz's public opinion that Sanchez and the rest of The Ultimate Fighter particpants were being given an easier path to the top compared to the rest of the fighters in the UFC.
Things went to another level in the locker room before the fight when Diaz taunted Sanchez and threw a shoe at him. Diaz was obviously confident coming into the bout but was unable to achieve success in the match, ultimately losing to Sanchez by unanimous decision. During the televised post-fight interview in the ring, Diaz continued the controversy by declaring that he had not gained any respect for Sanchez's fighting ability, despite Sanchez's convincing win.
[edit] Fighting inside and outside the octagon
Diaz's next fight would come against Joe Riggs at UFC 57. Similar to his treatment of Sanchez, Diaz made sure that he taunted his opponent plenty before their fight starting at the official press conference at the event in which Diaz confronted Riggs and the two exchanged words. They continued their conversation at the official weigh-ins in which both fighters had to be separated by UFC president Dana White and other officials present.
Riggs prevailed in a hard-fought battle, winning by unanimous decision and giving Diaz his second straight loss. After the fight, the two were taken to the hospital for observation and post-fight tests. It was there that Diaz confronted Riggs and proceeded to punch him in the face, knocking Riggs to his knees. Riggs proceeded to tackle Diaz into a wall and started to knee him when the police arrived and quickly rushed in to separate the two. Neither party, including the police, decided to press charges.
Unfortunately for Diaz, his struggles would continue. He would lose a third straight fight by unanimous decision to Sean Sherk at UFC 59. Diaz's inconsistency would result in the UFC terminating his contract and releasing him during the spring of 2006.
[edit] Return to the UFC
Diaz was actually slated to be one of the participants of The Ultimate Fighter 4 reality show[citation needed] but instead decided to return to his hometown of Stockton and participate in the International Cage Fighting Organization's inaugural event, defeating Ray Steinbess by unanimous decision. Diaz was slated to fight in his hometown again against John Alessio when he received an unexpected call the night before the fight from the UFC asking to fill in for an ill Thiago Alves at UFC 62.
after Alessio pulled out diaz took advantage of the opportunity, submitting Josh Neer in the third round. Seemingly back in the UFC, Diaz stopped newcomer Gleison Tibau with strikes in his next fight at UFC 65. However even after the win and the reassurance that the UFC would give him another fight, Diaz decided to sign with the Gracie Fighting Championships and leave the UFC. GFC had Diaz scheduled to fight Thomas Denny in January 2007, but due to poor ticket sales was ultimately cancelled. Diaz is currently signed to a two-fight deal with the Pride Fighting Championships organization against current Lightweigt champion Takanori Gomi in a non-title fight on February 24 in Las Vegas. PRIDE 33 was Diaz's first fight in the Pride organization and at the weight of 160lbs. While Gomi started the fight strong, once knocking Diaz to the ground, and twice ending up in his guard, the Californian dominated the standup battle with his unorthodox style, picking his opponent apart with quick and accurate jabs and looping punches. At the end of the first round, whether due to poor cardio on Gomi's part, or being dazed from the sheer number of strikes landed on him, the Japanese was clearly stunned, throwing much wilder punches and barely maintaining his defense. The second stanza saw a continuation of this, with Gomi eventually taking the fight to the ground and opening himself up for a Gogoplata submission by Diaz and tapping at 1:46 of the round. It is interesting to note that this was only the second successful Gogoplata attempt in Pride's history (the first performed by Shinya Aoki on Joachim Hansen less than two months earlier at Pride's New Year's event).Nick Diaz has failed the drug test that he took shortly before his win over Takanori Gomi at Pride 33: The Second Coming. Diaz tested positive for marijuana, according to the Nevada State Athletic Commission. The NSAC has the option of declaring the fight a "no contest," but has not yet decided to do so. Such a declaration is automatic in cases of performance enhancing drugs such as stimulants or steroids, but not automatic for a drug such as marijuana.
[edit] Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
Diaz is currently a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu brown belt under the famous Cesar Gracie whom he has been training with since he was a teenager. He is accomplished in both gi and no-gi jiu-jitsu. Some of the major titles he has won include the US Purple Belt Open in 2004 and a Pan American Brown Belt Medium Weight Division title in 2005. He also owns a victory over renowned grappler Jorge Patino in competition.
He is known for having a very modified sport BJJ style that suits his MMA career very well. Diaz lists his favorite submission as the kimura. He is widely known for his impressive upsidedown guard which he frequently uses in his fights. Diaz currently teaches jiu-jitsu at Pacific Coast Martial Arts in Stockton, California.
[edit] Boxing
Diaz is also a professional boxer and fights in the Super Middleweight weight class. He made his professional debut in April 2005 against Alfonso Rocha at the Radisson Hotel in Sacramento, California. Diaz was victorious, winning by unanimous decision after four rounds. He has not fought since.
[edit] MMA Record
| Result | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Notes |
| Win | Takanori Gomi | Submission (Gogoplata) | Pride 33-Second Coming | 2/24/2007 | 2 | 1:46 | Beat the Pride FC LW champion, non-title bout but tested positive for illegal drugs (marijuana) |
| 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 | Andrew 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 |
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] References
1. Nick Diaz Profile. Gracie Fighter Retrieved on 2006-12-18
2. Brett Atchley. What really happened at the UFC? Joe Riggs' Perspective. MMA Ring Report. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
3. Nick Diaz's Fight Record Courtesty of Sherdog Sherdog. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
4. Nick Diaz Fighter Profile OTM. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
5. Nick Diaz Info Ultimatefightingchampionship.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
6. Nick Diaz BoxRec Profile BoxRec. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
7. Thomas Gerbasi. Nick Diaz – 100% Fighter UFC.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
8. Nick Diaz UFC Profile UFC.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
9. There is no submission in Nick Diaz. Ninja Shoes MMA. Retrieved on 2006-12-18
10. Diego Sanchez: Nick Diaz Threw a Shoe at Me UFC Junkie. Retrieved on 2006-12-19
11. Nick Diaz Signs with the Gracie Fighting Championships MMA on Tap. Retrieved on 2006-12-19
12. Nick Diaz signs with Pride FC MMAWeekly.com Retrieved on 2007-01-23
Categories: Articles lacking sources from February 2007 | All articles lacking sources | Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Mexican American sportspeople | American mixed martial artists | Living people | 1983 births | People from Stockton, California
