Nate Diaz says not fighting in MMA makes him feel like something is wrong in his life, ahead of his return to the sport Saturday at MVP MMA 1.
Diaz has not competed in MMA in nearly four years, since submitting Tony Ferguson in the UFC 279 main event in September 2022. He has since boxed Jake Paul and Jorge Masvidal, but told reporters at Wednesday’s open workout that MMA is where he belongs.
“When I’m not fighting, I feel like I’m doing something wrong. It’s been my whole life. I’ve been fighting since I’m 16, 15 years old, pretty much, as far as amateurs and all that sh*t. I’ve been fighting more in my life than I haven’t been. When I’m not fighting, it doesn’t feel like I’m doing what I should be doing. It don’t feel right. I feel like it’s time to fight. It’s time to compete.”
Diaz faces Mike Perry in the welterweight co-feature of Saturday’s Netflix event at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. He said the platform was a key factor in his decision to return.
“It’s really cool that there’s new sh*t, especially Netflix coming in — the biggest and the best of all the outlets. I wasn’t going to do anything lower than this, or what I’ve been at.”
On Perry, Diaz said there was no manufactured hostility heading into the fight.
“He could have always made it a beef, but he never did. I’m not going to favor no beef. I don’t have no problem with him and I never did. I’m an athlete and world class and I would like to try to keep it that way.”