I’m a UFC icon who went on a four-week bender before losing to Jake Paul, that’s why he beat me, says Nate Diaz
NATE DIAZ has claimed he was on the razz for a full MONTH before he threw down with Jake Paul.
The former UFC superstar entered the professional boxing world last August to take on the YouTube and social media sensation.
And like fellow MMA fighters, Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley and Anderson Silva before him, Diaz fell at the hands of The Problem Child.
Diaz, 39, was dropped in the fifth round on his way to suffering a lacklustre decision defeat, which he claims was the result of him living his best life a month before fight night.
He recently told ESPN: “I went on a four-week bender before the fight.
“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.”
He added: “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 a**.
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“I’m the weakest puncher, and you’re the one that wanted to fight 30lb over my original weight division?
“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 halfway to my potential that day.”
Diaz also claims his performance was hindered by a niggling injury, saying: “I couldn’t even really throw a punch.
“I was f***ed up. And for two, he was the easiest fight I ever had.
“That was the longest fight at the heaviest weight class 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.”
Fan favourite Diaz returns to the ring early on Sunday morning for a rematch with rival Jorge Masvidal.
Diaz suffered a third-round TKO defeat to ‘Gamebred’ in the inaugural BMF title fight at UFC 244 in November 2019.
And preparations for the rematch have gone swimmingly in comparison to his last fight.
When asked how his training camp has been, Diaz said: “A lot better than the last fight, that’s for damn sure!”