UFC 111: Nate Diaz moves to 170 to meet Rory Markham in Newark
by GOLDIGGAH on Feb 1, 2010 5:46 PM EST
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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) today announced a welterweight match up between Nate Diaz and Rory Markham for the preliminary portion of the UFC 111 card from the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on March 27.
Ten bouts have now been made official.
This will be Nate Diaz's first trip up to welterweight after a rather frustrating run in the promotion's lightweight division. His last fight with top contender Gray Maynard at UFC Fight Night 20 ended controversially with Maynard edging Diaz out for a split decision victory.
Diaz, of course, let his opinions of the fight be known shortly after the contest, citing the lack of marks on his face, and the presence of them on Maynard's, as the reason he won the fight, as well as poor judging.
The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 5 winner will now take his 11-5 record up to 170.
Markham (16-5) is coming off a loss to the number one contender in the welterweight division, Dan Hardy, at UFC 95. He was scheduled to fight Martin Kampmann at UFC 108, but had to pull out because of a knee injury suffered during training.
Both guys will have some major question marks coming into the bout.
Will Diaz be successful at a higher weight class? Can he make the transition from one class to another smoothly in such a short amount of time? Will Markham's long layoff caused by injury affect him when he gets back in the cage?
Only time will tell. But in the meantime, let's hear some predictions.
UFC 111 will feature a 170-pound title defense by promotion superstar Georges St. Pierre as "Rush" answers the call of British striker Dan "The Outlaw" Hardy. Heavyweights Frank Mir and Shane Carwin are also set to collide in an interim title match while Brock Lesnar recovers from recent surgery.
To check out the latest UFC 111 fight card and rumors click here.
This was an original FanPost from GOLDIGGAH that was edited and promoted to the front page by James Kimball.
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yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah GOLDIE
I would love Diaz and Markham to go toe to toe.
It will start with great boxing and depending on how that goes… Nate will choke him out.
This is one of the best matches I’ve been wanting to see for the longest time.
"He wants to get in close and use that reach advantage" - Mike Goldberg
"Half of this game is 90% Mental" - Tim Sylvia
"I have two words for you... Destiny" - Diego Sanchez.
Anyone interested in a dumbest MMA quote of all time poll?
I don't know how well this will work
Obviously if his body won’t let him get to 155 comfortably, then it is a necessary move. However, considering the level of competition at 170, Diaz as a viable contender doesn’t really equate in my mind. It isn’t as though there is a void in high level ground games at the weight, and his boxing in a wrestling-centric LW division will be absolutely nothing to write home about in a division comprised of high grade strikers, namely Daley, St. Pierre, Hardy, Alves, Johnson, Swick, Saunders, etc…
Additionally, there are very few easy submission targets at WW. Can you really see Diaz submitting Fitch, Thiago, or Hazelett? Furthermore, Nate seems to have had trouble with good wrestlers capable of controlling him. Guida, and Stevenson for example. How will he fair against equal pedigree of an even greater size? See Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck, Georges St. Pierre.
I suppose that he was at best a fringe contender at 155. The saving grace was always that he was young and in time could potentially grow into a contender. Now, I think that flicker of hope was just extinguished.
he's still very young, just 24
much younger than most of those guys you just listed, with the exception of Hazelett (23) and Alves (26). He has plenty of time to build the strength necessary to compete at the top of WW. Think about it, what other 24-year-olds are there that have a remotely comparable resume to Nate Diaz? very few.
Goldie: "Michael Jordan-esque in his grappling skills is Travis Lutter."
Rogan: "No, no he's not. No."
I could definitely see Diaz getting Kay the Eff Ode here. Markham hits hard and knows how to put dudes away. Punches that were stunning Diaz at 155 are going to end his night at 170.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths,
The valiant never taste of death but once."
Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)
by Jeremyjackson on Feb 1, 2010 5:58 PM EST up reply actions
Agreed.
Friends and lovers lie endlessly, caught in the web of duty. Only enemies speak the truth.
-Stephen King
by OJR on Feb 1, 2010 6:16 PM EST up reply actions
true, but at the same time he’ll get better balance as he’s probably a stronger man at 170 so i think it will look much the same for him in the first couple of fights. He’ll need to put on some solid muscle.
fresh like uhh.
i simply cannot believe in Nate
He is nothing like his bro, and I feel he is the most over rated fighter in the UFC alongside Vera. The fanbase for these 2 baffles me.
War Rory & Jones!
worbanizer
by daniel worby on Feb 1, 2010 6:45 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I can’t see how VEra is overrated? if anything Jon Fitch is overrated, he gets all his wins because he’s a strong wrestler, he was almost KO’d by Pierce when he tried to stand with someone and he isn’t going to submit someone anytime soon either.
fresh like uhh.
Your criticisms have merit RoB, but Fitch wins his fights. Vera doesn’t.
Alves will take care of Fitch’s hopes for another shitle tot anytime soon.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths,
The valiant never taste of death but once."
Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)
by Jeremyjackson on Feb 1, 2010 7:13 PM EST up reply actions
Also, shows how Nate’s stock has fallen that this is an undercard bout. I’m sure it will be shown on the Spike prelims, though. What a card.
111-113 just look amazing. So amazing that I’m pretty damn sure a whole shitload of things will happen to screw it all up.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths,
The valiant never taste of death but once."
Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)
by Jeremyjackson on Feb 1, 2010 7:16 PM EST up reply actions
jj exactly
Beat me to it. Fitch wins in the same boring fashion the Vera loses. Hard to drop a guy after he’s winning non stop.
Also there is no way that Fitch has more fans then Vera, not on this site or to my knowledge anyways.
I understand Diaz is very young, but Guillard is even younger and he is 10x as entertaining in my opinion, with 2x the potential if someone can get through to that kid. And he was also beating Diaz very easily until he got careless LIKE ALWAYS.
worbanizer
by daniel worby on Feb 1, 2010 7:18 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Diaz will bulk out a bit now albeit not in time for Rory
But Rory is a cocky dick… least what ive seen of him. Nate has faught tougher guys @ 155 than Markham offers @ 170.
Sure he hits hard but i don’t see him dealing with someone he can’t intimidate which is what was good about him during the IFL run he had.
Nate will weather this storm and find a choke. After Rory gets frusterated Diaz will pick him apart and trip him. Rory hasn’t faught anyone other than Hardy as skillful as Diaz… no where close.
Congrats to everyone who picked Robbie over MM. He took an a$$ whoopin but played a "risky" game plan like a fiddle. H O L Y S H 1 T that was an insane finish - Melvin was completly waxed. 2/3 on the night. Crap.
I disagree Zino
The main issue with Markham is that he’s a slow starter and takes a lot of damager. However much like nate’s sub game, his striking game mainly his power gives him that dynamic offense that can end fights at moments notice. His record is proof of that. The fact that diaz
s pillow hands and his boxing isn’t nearly as good as Nicks’ negates any offense he has standing against Rory. Submission wise, rory is not gonna engage him on the mat. Nate doesn’t ever fight with strategy only goes where the fight takes him and arrogance that he can win it there until he gets frustrated and mad. So he will stand with him until he gets clipped hard. One thing though is that the Diazes much like the Nogs are very hard to damage and can take large accumulations of hits while still coming with that dogged determination, so he might only get edged out on a decision, might even win a third rds after rory gasses.
by NNR (formerly NameNotRequired) on Feb 1, 2010 8:49 PM EST up reply actions
Also Amos - your argument was on point
Changing divisions isn’t the answer when your weaknesses are of a technical nature. Letting anyone get to your body and keeping your feet planted and still striking at oncoming targets was never a good look at LW and especially won’t be at WW, a division filled with massive dominant wrestlers.
by NNR (formerly NameNotRequired) on Feb 1, 2010 8:55 PM EST up reply actions
his argument was on point and realize that Diaz is a natural 170 pounder, kid is only 24 and is going to grow into that division perfectly, the weight cut to 155 gave him no benefits at all.
fresh like uhh.
Agreed
After he didn’t make weight against Melvin I wanted to see him bulk up, he’s too big for 155 and cutting weight instead of bulking up is just making him weaker and dehydrated. If Nate takes this fight seriously and puts on weight properly then he should have no problems submitting Markham.
Diaz still has a very bright future, look how good Nick turned out to be despite a few decision defeats early in his career. I’m not writing off Nate by any means, he will come good and fulfill his potential. Moving up to 170 could be the motivation that he needs to work harder and become a better fighter.
"If I could change my name what would it be? Jesus"
Tito Ortiz (seriously...)
Well thought out and well-written post, Amos.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths,
The valiant never taste of death but once."
Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)
by Jeremyjackson on Feb 1, 2010 7:51 PM EST up reply actions
Amos isn't wrong...
Rory is a good entry level fight at 170 for Nate. He’s still young..really young 1985c
So he could evolve so much more still. I wouldn’t say his chance is gone.
How many 25 year olds have resumes like this:
Maynard UD loss questionable
Melvin Guillard submission win
Jdaddy UD loss
Huggy UD loss
Josh Neer win via sub
Pelligrino win via sub
Alvin Robinson via sub
Junior Assucao via sub
TUF winner
I also can’t remember when he took a lot of damage in any of these fights. I don’t know… Ive got to reserve judgement. Gracie Camp is blowing up right now.
Congrats to everyone who picked Robbie over MM. He took an a$$ whoopin but played a "risky" game plan like a fiddle. H O L Y S H 1 T that was an insane finish - Melvin was completly waxed. 2/3 on the night. Crap.
yeah he's right.
still though Nate needs to do what’s best for him and this is definitely it, he’s only 24 and so he will grow and as he does that he’ll end up killing himself trying to make 155.
better to move up a weight class now that he’s young and try to build himself up.
fresh like uhh.
just nit-picking
he beat Neer by Split Decision, and got pretty banged up against Pellegrino in the 1st round.
"You can deal with UFC, I know that they have flexible contract system. All these talks about "strict" contract terms with signing with UFC, come ONLY from Vadim Finkelstein, who wants to push his owns business projects through Fedor's fights" -- Aleksander Emelianenko
Even Neer couldn't believe that the fight was a split, he conceded the fight to Nate
Just another example of BS judging against Nate in my opinion. The Guida and Maynard decisions were crappy as well and wins over those 2 would have changed his career.
"If I could change my name what would it be? Jesus"
Tito Ortiz (seriously...)
Diaz’s advantages at LW are obvious, but if Hazelett can do okay at WW so can Diaz. I’d say he’d have the same amount of success he has at LW, that is, he’ll win some, he’ll lose some, he’ll have some good fights and match-ups, but he won’t be a contender, but nor does he have to be. He’s a good fighter and is fun to watch and I would look forward to potential match-ups such as Diaz versus Hazelett, Hardy, Saunders, Swick . . . this boy can take a punch and is hard to KO like his brother, so he should do fine, though, that’s if he can handle the power at WW, and if he can, he’s a welcome addition.
nate diaz needs some more muscle mass
i think he could beat rory markham if he did not raise his hands over his head as much. lol.
i'm all about covering the spread and moneylines. i was building a house, i don't deserve this, deserves have nothing to do with it. bang. "unforgiven"
by wolfmanshowlforever on Jan 20, 2010 2:10 PM EST reply actions
"Champions are not made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision." -Muhammad Ali
WAR DIAZ!!!
Nate by triangle choke!
by d*locc on Feb 1, 2010 11:13 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Diaz isn’t going to have added that much muscle mass by March. At least he won’t be as emaciated from cutting, though.
Dude, I love the quote from Unforgiven in your sig, but you butchered the hell out of it. If you’re gonna quote a great movie, get it right.
Little Bill Daggett: I don’t deserve this… to die like this. I was building a house.
William Munny: Deserves got nothin’ to do with it.
LBD: I’ll see you in hell, William Munny.
WM: Yeah.
BLAMMO.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths,
The valiant never taste of death but once."
Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)
by Jeremyjackson on Feb 1, 2010 6:08 PM EST up reply actions
Bad Idea
This is not a necessary or smart move on Nate’s part. He just lost a split decision to the co-#1 Contender. He also beat Guida, IMO. He’s got some quality wins in the division and could easily develop into a title shot worthy LW once BJ moves up to WW (he won’t fight BJ). If anything, doing as well as he did against Maynard should be a reason to stick around.
He’s going to get manhandled by the top guys at WW if he ever gets around to fighting them. He can’t stop the better wrestlers from controlling him and he can’t stand up with the better strikers.
But, he’s got a lot of guts. He can probably beat a guy like Markham, but not the next level up, right now. In a few years, who know, he could be a viable WW.
Diaz beat Maynard, no doubt in my mind....
Diaz would do well to lift some weights and do some more general strength work. He will benefit moving up to WW but it may take a little longer than 2 months to find his ideal condition. He boxed the hell out of Maynard and pole axed his title shot, combine that with his jits and he is always a tough matchup.
Almeida/Brown and Palhares/Drwal are nice fights as well. Have fun, should be a great card to see live.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths,
The valiant never taste of death but once."
Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)
by Jeremyjackson on Feb 1, 2010 7:46 PM EST up reply actions
Maybe both Diaz could take GSP out.
Given they fight him at the same time.
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. - Herm Albright
Nate's weight cut
I don’t get why he is going to 170 he’s not a big 155, my instructor Jose Figueroa is 6’3 and looks thicker than Nate and cuts to 155 no problem, the kind of fighters that fight 170 are usually 185-190. Nate looks like he weighs around 170 he should stay at 155 i don’t think he will do very well at 170 hes going to get out powered. Look at all the guys he’s fought that he’s lost too all top dog 1 fifty fivers.
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