Nate Diaz wants to fight The Rock, just a week after winning at UFC 279. He tweeted his thoughts and was clear on his intentions about fighting The Great One. You may remember how he went on a rant about The Rock’s company sponsoring the shoes worn by UFC fighters. He did that because he felt that way, but what was considered as a rant may actually be his way of provoking The People’s Champion into a fight.
Im only going to fight the rock
Otherwise I’m goood— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) September 21, 2022
Chael Sonnen, on the other hand, in an exclusive with James Lynch of Middle Easy thought that Diaz is missing out on a bigger aspect here which is $12 Million Dollars from the UFC. Diaz fought Tony Ferguson earlier this month at UFC 279 in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was the last deal he had on his contract that he finished off well. Sonnen thinks that Diaz’s best days are behind him, and he shouldn’t miss out on the big pay day that could help him well.
I guess he’s going to boxing. I mean, I can’t imagine the money. He’s probably staring at about $12 million dollars, with MMA math, to go and fight Conor McGregor a third time. I can’t imagine there’s that kind of money, even half of that in boxing. I know that’s the rumor and what we keep getting told. I don’t know how much I believe that it’s true.
Sonnen also talked about how it could just be a stint before Diaz goes to his own fight promotion called Real Fight Inc. He can always return to the Octagon for a fight on a better payday. ‘The Bad Guy’ thinks that with 15 years association, Diaz is a good UFC worker, but he may want to explore other choices too.
Nate said he’s going to go back to the UFC. He said, ‘I’m going to go do something else.’ He wasn’t very specific and didn’t elaborate but said he wants to do something else. Then he said, ‘I’m going to come back,’ but like anybody, the clock is ticking. We’ll see.
Chael thinks that Diaz may be going to boxing. He did point out that the grass may not be as greener as it seems and boxing may not pay him well, but they claim to have good money on the cards on any given day. Whether that is a fiction or a reality is what we need to see.
If he did come back, it might be for one more. But there could also be a carve-out opportunity. If his deal’s up when he was to come back to the boss and say, ‘I want to be able to do this. Give me a carve-out but I also want to have a contract with you if you can ever use me’. It’s not as though the UFC could really depend on Nate Diaz. In all fairness, he fought once a year on average over the last five years, twice in really, really busy years. They could bring him in, they could have some fun, they could do it on a one-off. I think it’s a unique situation, it’s not sustainable, it’s not a business practice that Dana could turn to. But there could be an exception and that exception could definitely be Nate.
Do you think Diaz calling out The Rock and Sonnen’s thoughts are in unison or there’s disparity? Sound off in the comments.
