Nick Diaz: "I Don't Need None Of This S*it"
Nick Diaz: "I Don't Need None Of This S*it"
Last Monday was a special day for Nick Diaz as his ban from competing in mixed martial arts was finally lifted. On January 13th the Nevada State Athletic Co
Last Monday was a special day for Nick Diaz as his ban from competing in mixed martial arts was finally lifted.
On January 13th the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) overturned his original five-year ban and reduced it to only 18 months for failing a post-fight drug test after his UFC 183 fight against Anderson Silva in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 31st, 2015.
While much of the talk on Monday was about Nick himself and the speculation of when he might return to the Octagon, the elder Diaz brother was looking at things from a bit of a different perspective--why come back at all?
Speaking to ESPN, Nick talked about his younger brother finding his feet at welterweight and said that 170lbs is the also the weight that he feels strongest at.
"It's nice to see him [Nate] come into 170 (pounds) and actually start to train and fill out at that weight," Nick said. "He's just a whole lot stronger and just as quick as ever. When you are 6 ft 1'' coming down to 155 you need to be in some kind of condition because you aren't going to be strong against those guys.
"It's like any short guys, they aren't doing the work that I'm doing to be optimal at that weight but I do it. Now you got people like Georges [St-Pierre] saying 'I can make 155lbs' and I'm like 'yeah--you have to because you wouldn't be able to fight at 170lbs and be strong'.
"You have to go and do the work and be strong at a lighter weight and that's what I've been doing my whole career. It's not that I don't think I can win at 185lbs, it's that I'm most optimal at 170lbs and you know like I said before, there are fights out there for me."
Diaz isn't wrong. The big names are lining to fight him on his return with the likes of Robbie Lawler, Tyron Woodley, Michael Bisping and even his old nemesis Georges St-Pierre all frequently linked to him. Despite all the fights he could possibly look at taking, Diaz wasn't so sure he was actually going to come back.
"I got the 185-pound champion and 170-pound champion--everybody wants to fight me," Diaz said. "I said look ok I've already negotiated a deal for pay-per-view without having a title. To me titles mean nothing. If you want to negotiate a deal we can talk about a date at any weight and we can meet in the middle because I owe nobody nothing and I don't need this."
"I don't know need this," he reiterated. "I don't need this interview, I don't need this sport and I don't need none of this s*it. I walk around and people know I am. I've got friends, I can make ends meet. I've been around people that have been hustling from the start. I think I've got a bright little future ahead of me if I don't fight. Especially if I don't fight. Why would I want to go out there and get my face punched and kicked?"
When it came to talking abut retirement, Diaz didn't commit to anything either way but he made it pretty obvious that he would never be pursuing a career in the MMA media.
"I don't have it out for nobody so who have I got it left with?" Diaz said. "What reason is there for me? I'm not out to do something for them. If you guys want to do something then just do it but I'm the only guy that is doing like real numbers. People want to see me, people know who I am.
"They don't know who you are, they don't care. Everybody knows these guys for getting put in front of a microphone and putting on a suit. That's not what I do, I don't think like that, that's not how I roll. I'm not a sportsman who is casting into a microphone--I do fights."
On January 13th the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) overturned his original five-year ban and reduced it to only 18 months for failing a post-fight drug test after his UFC 183 fight against Anderson Silva in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 31st, 2015.
While much of the talk on Monday was about Nick himself and the speculation of when he might return to the Octagon, the elder Diaz brother was looking at things from a bit of a different perspective--why come back at all?
Speaking to ESPN, Nick talked about his younger brother finding his feet at welterweight and said that 170lbs is the also the weight that he feels strongest at.
"It's nice to see him [Nate] come into 170 (pounds) and actually start to train and fill out at that weight," Nick said. "He's just a whole lot stronger and just as quick as ever. When you are 6 ft 1'' coming down to 155 you need to be in some kind of condition because you aren't going to be strong against those guys.
"It's like any short guys, they aren't doing the work that I'm doing to be optimal at that weight but I do it. Now you got people like Georges [St-Pierre] saying 'I can make 155lbs' and I'm like 'yeah--you have to because you wouldn't be able to fight at 170lbs and be strong'.
"You have to go and do the work and be strong at a lighter weight and that's what I've been doing my whole career. It's not that I don't think I can win at 185lbs, it's that I'm most optimal at 170lbs and you know like I said before, there are fights out there for me."
Diaz isn't wrong. The big names are lining to fight him on his return with the likes of Robbie Lawler, Tyron Woodley, Michael Bisping and even his old nemesis Georges St-Pierre all frequently linked to him. Despite all the fights he could possibly look at taking, Diaz wasn't so sure he was actually going to come back.
"I got the 185-pound champion and 170-pound champion--everybody wants to fight me," Diaz said. "I said look ok I've already negotiated a deal for pay-per-view without having a title. To me titles mean nothing. If you want to negotiate a deal we can talk about a date at any weight and we can meet in the middle because I owe nobody nothing and I don't need this."
"I don't know need this," he reiterated. "I don't need this interview, I don't need this sport and I don't need none of this s*it. I walk around and people know I am. I've got friends, I can make ends meet. I've been around people that have been hustling from the start. I think I've got a bright little future ahead of me if I don't fight. Especially if I don't fight. Why would I want to go out there and get my face punched and kicked?"
When it came to talking abut retirement, Diaz didn't commit to anything either way but he made it pretty obvious that he would never be pursuing a career in the MMA media.
"I don't have it out for nobody so who have I got it left with?" Diaz said. "What reason is there for me? I'm not out to do something for them. If you guys want to do something then just do it but I'm the only guy that is doing like real numbers. People want to see me, people know who I am.
"They don't know who you are, they don't care. Everybody knows these guys for getting put in front of a microphone and putting on a suit. That's not what I do, I don't think like that, that's not how I roll. I'm not a sportsman who is casting into a microphone--I do fights."