Nate Diaz smokes weed and quietly steals the show ahead of UFC 263
PHOENIX â If there was any concern that Nate Diazâs star power has waned in the 19 months since heâs stepped into a UFC cage, it likely vanished in a puff of marijuana smoke at Thursdayâs UFC 263 pre-fight press conference.
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© Provided by MMAJunkieWith a raucous crowd at Arizona Federal Theater, Diaz was every bit as in-demand as headliners Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori, or co-headliners Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno â if not more.
Diaz (20-12 MMA, 15-10 UFC) meets top welterweight contender Leon Edwards (18-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) in a five-round contest on the pay-per-view main card Saturday at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz. As the six fighters in attendance looked for one last opportunity to build interest in the event, Diazâs presence seemed more important than any words.
The 36-year-old Stockton, Calif., native admitted the fan support was impressive.
âIt makes me happy to be back and be on a great card,â Diaz told MMA Junkie.
That was the full length of his response, and it wasnât even his shortest answer of the day. That honor would fall to this detailed reply when asked how training camp went: âCamp went good.â
Diazâs demeanor stood in stark contrast to the full-volume tirades laced between middleweight champ Adesanya and challenger Vettori. Yet the fan support for his every word was no less emphatic, especially as he took a few puffs of a joint â first half-hiding it under the dais and then later out in the open as the ceremony wore on.
âThereâs love everywhere I go,â Diaz said. âI love the support, and I love the whole sh*t man. This is great. This is great that these guys are getting it, doing their thing, too. Real fight, so thatâs cool.â
Flyweight champ Figueiredo tried to stoke his budding rivalry with Moreno by shoving him as the two came together for faceoffs. Diaz did no such thing, instead offering a compliment to his opponent and comparing Edwards to the legendary Georges St-Pierre.
âI believe that just how GSP was doing his thing back in the day, I believe (Edwards) is doing the same thing, and heâs not getting no love for it, so Iâm pumped to fight a worthy opponent, and thatâs what Iâm here for,â Diaz said. âIâm coming to win.â
Accomplishing that certainly wonât be an easy assignment. Oddsmakers currently have Edwards installed as a -600 favorite, implying a nearly 86 percent expectation for the Brit to hand Diaz his second straight defeat, a result that would drop him to 1-3 in his past four appearances.
But as itâs been for much of his career, Thursdayâs press conference proved once again that Diaz has reached the rare status of boasting a career that isnât completely dependent on victories, nor does it require a boisterous push of pre-fight hype. When Diaz is on the card, fans already know exactly what they can expect.
âEvery fight is going to be the baddest motherf*cking fight youâve ever seen,â Diaz said.
MORE:UFC 263 video: Israel Adesanya-Marvin Vettori faceoff puts Dana White in tough spot
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