Nate Diaz supports Conor McGregor‘s decision to withdraw from UFC 303 due to injury, citing his own experiences with pre-fight injuries and emphasizing that critics should not judge McGregor’s handling of his health.
Nate Diaz has Conor McGregor’s back on this one.
“The Notorious” has come under fire recently. A toe injury led him to withdraw from a highly anticipated UFC 303 main event against Michael Chandler. Adding to the frustration for MMA fans was the secrecy surrounding the status of the main event. McGregor’s absence led to the cancellation of a press conference in Dublin on June 3. It wasn’t until 10 days later that the UFC announced McGregor vs. Chandler would not happen at the June 29 pay-per-view.
One of the voices supporting McGregor is Diaz, a longtime rival who has fought him twice inside the octagon. On the MightyCast podcast, Diaz told Demetrious Johnson that McGregor’s injuries from his most recent fight likely informed his decision to back out of the Chandler fight.
“That’s experience,” Diaz said. “He was fcked up when he fought his last fight and I’ve been fcked up in hella fights.” He added, “I don’t like to cry about it afterwards because your ass shouldn’t have come to the fight if you were f*cked up.”
“So I’m like, from an inexperience angle, all these people are talking shit but he doesn’t give a f*ck and I felt the same way,” Diaz continued. “The show got pushed back; it didn’t get canceled.” He believes they should fight in a few months and everyone criticizing him should understand he didn’t pull out; they just pushed it back.
McGregor hasn’t fought since July 2021 at UFC 264, where he broke his leg in a trilogy bout against Dustin Poirier. This injury has kept him sidelined for nearly three years.
Diaz feels McGregor’s star power gives him leverage in possibly re-booking the Chandler fight. This is why Diaz thinks withdrawing from UFC 303 was wise.
“That’s how I felt when I fought Leon Edwards,” Diaz shared. “I was training so good for that fight and two weeks before, I got cut on my chin and my eye.” He had to cancel and was stressed out but decided to push it instead of pulling out completely.
“So they call these motherf*ckers and they hit my guy back asking if I just didn’t want to fight,” Diaz explained. “We’re like, ‘No, he just got cut.’ They pushed it to the next show.”
It remains uncertain if McGregor vs. Chandler will ever happen. Both fighters seem open but non-committal about rescheduling.
No matter what McGregor does next, Diaz thinks people have no right to criticize how he’s dealt with his injuries.
“So now before you jump to conclusions calling him a p*ssy,” Diaz said, “remember he lost his last fight because he went in hurt like a G.” He added that showing up hurt wasn’t wise; now McGregor knows better.
“People were like, ‘Well…’ Why don’t you shut up and sit down?”
As for their history, Diaz knows a trilogy bout with McGregor will be discussed until one retires. Their first encounter saw Diaz hand McGregor his first loss inside the octagon at UFC 196; then came a thrilling rematch at UFC 202 where McGregor won by majority decision—both events among UFC’s most successful pay-per-views.
Diaz’s own pre-fight injuries make him certain they’ll run it back one more time.
“I ripped cartilage in my rib ahead of UFC 202,” said Diaz. “I can’t even fight this motherf*cker.” Despite being injured, he still fought and believes another match is inevitable.
“That’s 100 percent,” he concluded confidently. “I’m fighting all these motherf*ckers again if they don’t fall off and retire.”