According to TMZ, last week UFC bosses Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White journeyed to the 209 to have a working lunch with Nate Diaz. By TMZ’s telling, White stormed off mid meeting.
White wouldn’t comment beyond saying “I didn’t have a good day in Stockton.
However, Diaz appeared recently on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour, and offered a more nuanced picture of what transpired.
“That was exaggerated,” said Diaz said of the TMZ story, as transcribed by Dave Doyle for MMA Fighting. “We finished talking and then we walked out. It wasn’t the worst meeting. It wasn’t the best meeting but it wasn’t the worst meeting either.”
McGregor vs. Diaz I was reportedly the 2nd biggest PPV in UFC history, behind UFC 100. Diaz wants to be paid accordingly, higher than he had agreed to for the UFC 200 rematch that fell apart when McGregor failed to fulfill contracted media duties. Further, Diaz wants a media boost similar to that afforded McGregor.
“It seems like this is a pretty big deal, so can I be compensated for this?” said Diaz. “They weren’t the happiest about that, but they’re not talking to me about it right now, so we’re working on it and we’re going to get it figured out.”
“I think they thought that this is the new deal, this is a new fight. That was UFC 200, this is UFC 202 now. I said yes to 200, and I wasn’t happy with it. I was rushed into the last thing anyway.”
“Can I get built up a little better? Conor McGregor is an artificial, they pushed him and he wasn’t whooping all types of asses and s***. They put me in, I’ve been in fight after fight, I didn’t do no media, I didn’t do no s***… now he’s where he’s at because the UFC kicked his ass and put him in gear and blew him up. How come he was such a big deal when he beat Dennis Siver. Who the f*** is Dennis Siver? Is that guy even ranked? I’m like, ‘get the f*** out of here.’
“My following is strictly from ass whooping and talking some s***. And this motherf***er is like on top of the world because the UFC wanted him to?”
“We went and took a picture by the mural that was downtown here, and then afterwards we talked a little more. They were cool and I was cool and it was just business talk. It didn’t end on the happiest notes but I think stuff is getting done and stuff is moving forward.”
