The highly anticipated fight between Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal, has been moved to the Honda Center in Anaheim. The 10-round light heavyweight showdown will take place on July 6 and will be available on Fanmio PPV.
Masvidal spoke with The Sporting Tribune before the big event. He talked about growing up in Miami, reflecting on their first encounter at Madison Square Garden and sharing his thoughts ahead of the main event against Diaz at the Honda Center.
In 2019, Diaz and Masvidal clashed for the inaugural BMF championship at UFC 244 in the UFC's Octagon. The high-stakes battle concluded with an unsatisfactory doctor's stoppage due to a cut over Diaz's eye, granting Masvidal the victory.
The time has come for them to face each other once again, but this time, it's in a boxing ring.
Although the initial event took place in an octagon, Masvidal reflected on the special evening in New York five years ago, where he was in the company of Donald Trump, The Rock, and his all-time favorite fighter, Roberto Duran.
"When the job got done, and I got my hand raised, and I was letting all that stuff sink in, Trump is there pointing at me, Roberto Duran is tapping my shoulder, The Rock is wrapping the belt around my waist, I'm a champion in the UFC, all that is hitting, and I'm like, wow. This is fucking surreal as it gets." Masvidal told The Sporting Tribune.
The three-part series "Last Man Standing" gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at the lives, training camps, and buildup to the fight between Diaz and Masvidal. The first episode aired on YouTube on Thursday evening and examines the backgrounds and training camps of Diaz and Masvidal, as well as the origin of their rivalry.
On June 6, they held a press conference in Anaheim where both camps got into a heated argument, which led to a physical altercation between their teams. Masvidal called Diaz a "Coward" for walking out of the press conference.
Team Nate Diaz just swung on Jorge Masvidal and an all-out brawl broke out at the presser 😳 pic.twitter.com/qECFKHe6uz
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) June 6, 2024
This incident has added even more excitement and tension to their upcoming professional boxing light heavyweight showdown, which is set to be the main event of a Fanmio PPV on Saturday, July 6 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Masvidal is anxious to get in the ring with Diaz as the fight has been pushed back multiple times. He shared that the state of California will have to press charges cause he's going to murdered Diaz. The confidence level is higher than ever before, Masvidal said.
"I know I'm faster, stronger, more explosive, and way meaner of a person than him. He's not half as mean as me."
In August 2023, Diaz made his professional boxing debut against Jake Paul, with Paul winning by unanimous decision. Masvidal's most recent fight was at UFC 287, where he suffered his fourth consecutive loss to Gilbert Burns in Miami.
At 39 years old, Masvidal had a professional record of 35-17 in MMA. He is best known for achieving the fastest knockout in UFC history, defeating Ben Askren in just five seconds in July 2019.
Check out the full interview with Jorge Masvidal and Fredo Cervantes below as we look ahead to the main event on July 6.