Nate Diaz’s boxing coach Ricardo Perez appeared recently on the ever tremendous Submission Radio, and talked about the fight with Conor McGregor at UFC 196 on March 5. Diaz took the fight on just ten days notice, when UFC lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos dropped out with a foot injury.
The fight had been scheduled for 155, but will be taking place at the non-title welterweight limit of 171, a weight that the coach Diaz is at right now. The coach also Nate could have made 155.
Diaz previously said he thinks everyone in the UFC is on Performance Enhancing Drugs, including McGregor. The coach agreed.
Oh I sure do believe that, heck yeah,” he said. “Some guys, they get busted – and to be honest with you, I know McGregor has got to be on some kind of steroids, he’s pretty big. And then all of a sudden jumping to 170? Yeah there’s no way, cause I mean, he was supposed to be fighting at 155. So if you think about it, he was focusing on training at 155. He only had two weeks to go. And all of a sudden he’s gonna jump to 170? So no, there’s something going on. But still, I mean, we’re still gonna fight and that’s all there is to it.
“When Nathan mentioned it to him he got defensive, he got angry. If somebody would have told me that I was fighting and he told me, you know, steroids, I would laugh and say, ‘yeah give me some more steroids, heck yeah, ah ha sure’. But he got defensive and mad, you know, ‘I’m not on steroids, I’m not on steroids.’ You know, he was like trying to defend himself. So that, just his actions and the way he talked is…there’s something behind that.
The coach was then pressed, and asked if the weight gains were simply from not having to make the 145 limit.
Well, all I know is that he was supposed to fight at 155,” replied the coach. “And for some reason I don’t think he would have made the weight, because he was trying to go to 165 and then he went to 170. So think about it. If you see that, you would think he had two more weeks to go, he would be close to 155 and stay on that, you know, or go to 160. But he didn’t, he jumped to 170. So that’s kinda shady right there.
McGregor couldn’t make the weight. Because he would have said ‘okay, let’s go to 160 or let’s go to 155,’ because Nathan was ready for it. And he didn’t [accept]. So then he jumped to 170. Why? I mean, two weeks ago – and you know, if you’re a fighter and you’ve been training for two months or so and you’re already cutting your weight down, so in two weeks you should be close to 155. But he’s at least five pounds over, you know. No. So all of a sudden 155 to 170? Oh boy, that’s a big jump. So there’s something fishy going on there.
Well the thing is, [in] the striking department, Nate is a lot better when he’s in good shape and not injured or anything. So when it comes to the night of the fight, McGregor’s going to be shocked.
McGregor is a good striker. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying he’s not, but Nathan’s better. I mean, when Nathan’s on his gameplan he’ll make him look silly.”
