Kevin Holland offers his services if Nate Diaz wants a fight to ultimately fulfill the terms of his UFC contract.
After Diaz said he would fight "anyone" to finish his current contract with the UFC, Holland, who had recently defeated Tim Means by submission at UFC Austin, put his name in the hat for potential opponents.
Diaz still has one fight left on his contract, and he's made it clear that he wants to fight it out so he can become a free agent and start considering offers from other suitors. Holland is now taking the call and pledging to send Diaz home after a defeat.
Holland told MMA Fighting, "I'd smoke Diaz in the battle." "Big brother or small brother—it makes no difference. I'd smoke with either Diaz brother. I believe Nate to be a superior combatant over Nick. I'd smoke them any way.
Let's face it, they are over the hill. Both fights are entertaining. Both of them are over the hill. Although Leon [Edwards] has a butter chin, Nate played well against him. What is, is what is. Without a doubt, Nate and I would enjoy ourselves.
Since complaining repeatedly about not being given a fight so he could fulfill his contract, Diaz and the UFC have been locked in a bitter relationship for months. Nick Diaz, who just suffered a defeat to Robbie Lawler in his first fight back in more than six years, has said that he intends to return to competition, though nothing has yet been scheduled for him.
Holland, meanwhile, is feeling good after winning back-to-back bouts at welterweight, including this past weekend's submission victory over Means and stoppage victory over Alex Oliveira.
Although Holland initially requested a battle with unbeaten prospect Sean Brady right after his victory, he now acknowledges that the thought of facing Diaz truly interests him.
Holland remarked, "In all honesty, I would love to see Sean Brady face someone else and go up to the crown." "Consider it – [Kamaru] Usman needs some new looks if he weighs 170 pounds.
He has [Khamzat] Chimaev, a player similar to Sean Brady, and [Shavkat Rakhmonov], a newcomer who is on the rise and is a fairly badass. There are certain individuals out there that would be good for Usman up and coming, and you can place me on the tail end of that. However, I can't pronounce his name correctly so I don't want to screw it up.
Holland has never backed down from a challenge and is willing to take on any opponent the UFC sends his way, but he thinks a fight with Diaz would get a lot of interest.
Holland anticipates a battle with Diaz would result in more than a few memorable soundbites, not to mention a spectacular collision for the spectators. Holland is known for chatting to his opponents in the cage.
Without a doubt, Holland believed that she and Nate would enjoy themselves. "I believe the back-and-forth s*** would be great.
"I would allow Stockton to slap me once simply for the crowd, and then I would give him the slip. I would get it back for the fans even though he wouldn't allow me. Yes, I agree that that would be a good fight.
While Holland expects that his power would be more than enough to overwhelm Diaz, he would actually prefer to test himself against the one-time UFC title challenger across 25 minutes in a main event fight.
In fact, Holland confesses that he’d like to work on his conditioning for a fight with Diaz, especially after he had to push himself to chase after an alleged perfume thief in Austin just a day before his win over Means.
“I wouldn’t try to knock Nate out,” Holland said. “I’d try to go five rounds with Nate. I’d try to test my cardio with Nate. I know my coaches don’t want to hear that but I think I could just beat Nate anywhere. I think it would be awesome.”
"That Austin crackhead stretched my cardiovascular system. Nate has a crack-head-like build. He would undoubtedly increase my heart rate."
Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, who is famous for his highlight-reel knockouts and distinctive hitting technique, was also suggested to Holland as a potential opponent.
Holland would be open to the challenge if it were presented to him. Thompson is now reeling after successive defeats to Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad, both by unanimous decision.
I actually like both of these pairings, remarked Holland. Both matches are a lot of fun, but neither shows that I can defeat the champion. I am at a really good place in my life because of both pairings. I honestly think I can beat both of these people in a variety of ways.
"Wonderboy's striking could not match mine. He practices karate. My kung-fu is up against karate. Although I shouldn't, I'm very certain I would wreck on him if we got into a fight.
Holland acknowledges that Diaz would be his top option, but if the UFC wants to keep him busy for the remainder of 2022, he's more than willing to accept fight after fight.
Holland responded, "Let's spread it around. "I'll take Wonderboy first, then I'll take Nate."
‘I have bigger s*** to do’
Nate Diaz appears to have his sights set on a boxing battle with Jake Paul, thus he wants to finish out his UFC contract in the coming months or obtain an unconditional release.
Once more, Diaz turned to social media to urge the UFC nicely for two things: either to put him on a show in July or August, or to just let him go so he may pursue other profitable endeavors.
However, Diaz hinted at a shift to the squared circle to meet Paul in this specific ask by playing a clip of Paul brutally dispatching Tyron Woodley in their rematch in December.
Paul is now slated to compete against an opponent whose name has not yet been made public on August 6 at the venerable Madison Square Garden in New York. It is extremely doubtful that Diaz, a well-known MMA fighter, has been given that match because of his contract with the UFC, but that doesn't mean a fight in the future wouldn't be widely anticipated.
A little more than a year ago, at UFC 263, Diaz lost by unanimous decision to up-and-coming welterweight championship contender Leon Edwards.
Paul will presently end the program on August 6 in a contest at New York's venerable Madison Square Garden against an opponent who has not yet been revealed. It's extremely doubtful that Diaz, a well-known MMA fighter, has been given that battle because of his contract with the UFC, but that doesn't mean he won't get a lot of attention if he ever does.
The last time Diaz fought was at UFC 263, where he was defeated by Leon Edwards, who will soon fight for the welterweight belt.
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