We have some good news if you enjoyed the recent showdown between Nate Diaz and Jake Paul. After the fight, Diaz showed interest in another face-off against the ex-YouTuber.
Continue reading to find out what Diaz’s fight plans look like against Paul.
Paul defeated Diaz in a 10-round unanimous decision in his professional boxing debut Saturday at American Airlines Centre. Following the decision, Diaz was promptly challenged by Paul to an MMA rematch under the PFL banner, with a $10 million payoff on the line.
Ultimately Diaz and his brother Nick expressed interest in a rematch. So, will Diaz compete in MMA or boxing next? Diaz wants another chance to get his hands on Paul in some way.
In the first round, it was all Jake Paul taking charge. He went after Nate Diaz with those big hooks upstairs, making Diaz step back before they clinched up. You could see Diaz’s punches didn’t have that early power, so he stuck to his usual MMA style of wearing down opponents over time.
Round two got interesting. Paul landed some solid right hands, but Diaz fired back with a right hand of his own. That round was a close call, with Diaz showing some real guts by pushing forward despite eating up Paul’s shots in the previous round.
Then, in the third round, Paul pulled off a slick move – a counter left hook that connected nicely. Diaz, being Diaz, kept moving forward and threw some lighter punches. The commentators, Shawn Porter and ex-UFC fighter Dan Hardy, started wondering if Diaz was banking on his classic accumulation strategy, even in boxing gloves.
Onto the fourth round, where Diaz got a nice combination going, ending it with a straight punch down the middle. He kept up that unrelenting pressure, finishing the round strong and looking like he might just take it.
Things took a turn in the fifth round, though. Diaz got knocked down by a sneaky fadeaway hook that hit him on the temple. But kudos to him, he got back on his feet. Paul kept the heat on with an uppercut and more punches, and Diaz toughed it out until the bell rang.
Diaz kept that forward momentum going, and by the eighth round, he was scoring hits on a tiring Paul. Those uppercuts were Diaz’s go-to move. He wrapped up the round with an impressive combo, making a statement.
The fight went the whole distance, and Jake Paul came out as the stronger puncher when it was all said and done. The judges gave him the win in a unanimous decision. But man, Diaz’s heart and stamina were on full display. He never backed down, and that’s what we love about watching him in the ring.
Diaz expressed his desire to pursue both avenues, stating after the fight that he would like to secure victory in the boxing match and also demonstrate his true fighting skills to Paul.
Leading up to his boxing match against Paul on Saturday, Diaz disclosed that he had suffered an arm injury which somewhat restricted his range of techniques. Despite this setback, he indicated that he wouldn’t take much time to decide on his next steps. He mentioned his plan to return home and take a week or two to deliberate, aiming to reemerge as a transformed individual.
So, will we witness these two fierce competitors lock horns once again, and in what arena?
