UFC 241: How Nate Diaz appealed to his most severe critic and resumed his momentum



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Among the most important victories of Nate Diaz's career in the UFC, Saturday's victory will likely return to the mythological appeal of the sport's greatest anti-hero, just before his 2016 win against Conor McGregor .

No, Diaz did not show his opponent at UFC 241. He did look good in the win by eliminating former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis in their welterweight fight while fueling the belief that three years of late octagon, "ring rust" is just a myth.

The bid in question took place just over an hour after Diaz's victory over Pettis when Dana White took the stand for the post-fight press conference. When asked if Diaz had climbed the heights of McGregor and Ronda Rousey as a must-see attraction, the UFC president eventually slipped away and broke free after years of public dissension between him. and Diaz.

"It's pretty hard to deny right now: it's a switchman," White says.

White's quote of course referred to his controversial remarks made in July 2014 at a press conference in Dublin, Ireland, on the eve of McGregor's victory over Diego Brandao. White, while praising Diaz's older brother, Nick, as someone who demands the attention of UFC fans, has sadly reproached Nate for not moving the needle of the same way.

Time and time again in the years that followed, White's comments were proven only as false. In 2016, Diaz took advantage of a last-minute opportunity to deal with McGregor and produced the tap heard around the world (followed by his legendary replica, "I'm not surprised, moms!") . Five months later, Diaz lost a narrow decision against McGregor in his rematch between all the stock, not only at the forefront of one of the biggest fights in the history of the UFC, but also setting a new pay-per-view record.

The last one to know – or at least willingly accept 00 that Diaz had raised his cross celebrity status was White. The three years that followed saw two events unfold simultaneously: Diaz is inexplicably absent for more than 1,000 days at the peak of his commercial career while remaining true to his principles, and UFC has completely missed the development of A true counter-culture superstar McGregor's golden ear began to move away from the activity.

All this may have changed on Saturday, when 34-year-old Diaz put his career back in the cards with a complete and technically impressive victory over the dangerous Pettis. In order to recover as an elite fighter, Diaz has passed the test with flying colors. But it was nothing compared to the impact of what White's comments could do for his career from now on.

Diaz may not have given up his steaming past of grass and the average finger to suddenly put on a UFC sports coat and sell his proverbial soul to become a corporate man. Given Diaz's fierce reluctance to compromise what he defends, such a thing would never have happened. But White's proposal regarding the power of the Diaz brand was hard to ignore, as it was a decisive moment in the unpredictable journey that the native of Stockton, California, went through to the end. At this point.

If we were honest, White would have had even less of a wooden peg on which he could have stood if he had ignored the reality of what Diaz had accomplished. All the indicators used to gauge the interest in UFC 241 showed that Diaz's return was the real draw for this card, far more than the formidable fight between the heavyweight title between Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic.

While trying to get into Diaz's head and predict that his next move is almost an impossible task, hope that he intends to stay active and make the kind of fights not to be missed that the fans covet. According to his post-fight comments, which included Jorge Masvidal's appeal, equally formidable, and wanting to defend his mythical title as a true sports gangster, it seems like this could to be a possibility.

If that happens and Diaz enjoys the twilight of his professional career by realizing his almost inconceivable potential as a true pay-per-view brand (while being paid for it), it would be a huge win for all fans , fans, whites and UFC. An almost instant title contender in two divisions because of his name and his pedigree, Diaz does not even have to worry about climbing the ladder and defeating opponents if he prefers the superb fights against d & rsquo; Other big names. He has this luxury because of what he is fighting for and the beliefs he defends so vigorously.

There is actually only one Nathan Diaz, and that's about the same as his own employer has recognized him as being more than anyone else in the business: a munching soldier radical that passes through the BS of superficial promotion, demanding your attention and your interest in the reality that he chooses to be.

In a world of combat sports brimming with self-promotion and noise, the authenticity of Diaz is the last remaining motto and a return to the roots of this sport that is simply about wanting to know who is the best. the hardest man in the world. Even after three long years, when Diaz appeared, the needle moved again.

To quote the self-proclaimed O.G. from the octagon, "I'm not surprised mother — — ers."

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