UFC hardman Nate Diaz’s blunt reaction when asked if he would fight Jake Paul in boxing bout
NATE DIAZ gave UFC president Dana White a blunt response when asked about a possible fight with Jake Paul.
The youngest Diaz brother has been in the crosshairs of the YouTuber turned boxer for close to a year.
Diaz, 37, teased a multi-million-pound showdown with the social media sensation when he demanded his UFC release last month, although he emphatically shut down the idea during a recent chat with White.
The MMA mogul told : “I don’t know [if Diaz will fight Paul].
"He said, ‘I would never do that.’ That’s what he said to me. He said, ‘That s**t’s goofy.’
"I don’t know. That’s what he said to me.”
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Diaz's plea to be released from the UFC was ignored by the promotion, who have since matched him up against undefeated welterweight Khamzat Chimaev for the final fight of his contract.
But prior to the booking of the fight, White told The MacLife: “No. I like Nate, let’s be honest – Nate’s won one fight in the last five or six years.
“When these guys get into these positions, we’ve got guys that have been with us for a long time that we respect, that we care about.
“Donald Cerrone, Anthony Pettis before he left, Nate Diaz and Nick Diaz. So you wanna be fair to everybody, you wanna do the right things.
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“Nate Diaz isn’t gonna come in and fight Kamaru Usman.
“Listen, we’re trying to do the best we can, trying not to s*** on anybody or disrespect anybody, but it’s not like we’re talking about Kamaru Usman here.
“We’re talking about Nate Diaz, Nate’s won one fight in five years, so we’re trying to figure this thing out with him.
“He probably should go on and fight Jake Paul. That’s a fight that makes sense.”
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Fan favourite Diaz will face Chimaev on September 10 in the main event of UFC 279 in Las Vegas.
Paul, meanwhile, faces Hasim Rahman Jr - the son of former heavyweight champ Hasim Sr - at Madison Square Garden a week on Saturday.