The American mixed martial artist Nate Diaz, who is currently a free agent, recently expressed his respect for Leon Edwards and hoped that he remains the UFC welterweight champion.
While speaking in a press conference in Texas while promoting Logan Paul fight, Nate was asked if he would like to face his old rival Leon again where he also praised him.
“I don’t think I’m over him either, too,” Diaz said. “He’s great. He’s a great fighter also, and it’d be cool if he hung on to (the UFC title) for a while and he deserves it. Trains hard and works hard,” said the 38-year-old former UFC fighter.
The two men previously met in the Octagon at UFC 263 on June 13, 2021, which turned out to be Diaz’s second last fight in the UFC and perhaps his MMA career. Edwards won with a comfortable unanimous decision in the five-round on the UFC 263 main card, although for many fans the enduring memory of that fight was the fact that Diaz managed to rock the future champion late in the bout.
Following his win over Diaz, Leon went on to challenge Kamaru Usman for the UFC’s welterweight title at UFC 278 on August 21, 2022. The 31-year-old stunned Usman with a head kick in the final minute, and Edwards cemented his place as champion by earning a majority decision in their rematch at UFC 286.
Diaz, who finished his contract with the UFC after a win against Tony Ferguson in the main event of UFC 279 on September 11, 2022, is set to test himself in the boxing ring against Jake Paul.
Diaz will be taking on Paul in the boxing ring on August 5 in Dallas.