Coach explains why Diaz missed flight
Cesar Gracie: “Nick wasn’t prepared for that. He was just trying to get into fight mode and rest and everything … He was trying to mentally get himself geared in.”
Nick Diaz’s coach Cesar Gracie appeared recently on Ariel Helwani‘s The MMA Hour, and explained why the fighter missed his morning flight to Vegas, arriving later in the day, and missing the UFC 183 open workouts.
“I had to go back home for some things, so I didn’t make it here as soon as I would have liked to,” said Diaz as transcribed by Marc Raimondi for MMA Fighting. “So I apologize to all the fans, especially the ones that were here to see the open workout. I didn’t really put too much thought into it. I was just more focused on the fight. I’ve pulled the same card a couple of times. It’s pretty inconsiderate of me. Again, I apologize to all the fans who were anticipating a show on Wednesday.”
The coach however filled in the details.
“He didn’t know about the (UFC Embedded) camera crew there,” said Gracie. “They totally caught him off guard. He wasn’t ready for it. He was uncomfortable and he wouldn’t be able to rest. So he said, ‘Hey, I’m catching a different plane’ and then he left.”
“Nick wasn’t prepared for that. He was just trying to get into fight mode and rest and everything. He didn’t want to answer a bunch of questions. He didn’t want the spectacle of it at that point. He was trying to mentally get himself geared in.”
Missing the flight ended up generating a great deal of publicity, and ultimately was positive. Cowboy Cerrone offered to step in. If Aliens ever attack the Earth, expect a tweet from Cowboy – “In gd shape, RV gassed up, rdy to kick some green butt.” And UFC president Dana White, somewhere between amusement and resignation, Instagrammed a memorable image:
Gracie noted that the no fly was “unintentionally brilliant” adding that that Nick was not pulling a publicity stunt.
“That is not the reason Nick did it,” said Gracie. “He does things for his own safety and well-being. At the time for his well-being, he didn’t want to get on that flight.”