Cesar Gracie: ‘If UFC is paying a camera guy $50,000 for a couple of days, they should pay the fighters more’

Famed mixed martial arts (MMA) trainer Cesar Gracie, head instructor to the likes of Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz, Gilbert Melendez and Jake Shields, calls shenanigans on Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White's claims that the older of the Diaz boys, Nick, has cost the company a "shitload" of money in production fees for failing to appear for scheduled filming.

According to Gracie, there must have been some miscommunication between ZUFFA's production crew and White because Diaz had already fulfilled some of his obligations prior to White's rant.

Furthermore, Cesar says if you want some of the Stockton slugger's time, you have to do it on his terms because his schedule is very busy and he isn't going to stop his routine for media obligations.

But then again, we already knew that.

Nevertheless, Gracie says it's "impossible" that Diaz has cost White and Co. boku bucks for failed appearances and says if the company is spending $50,000 to pay a "camera guy," then the fighters need to get a raise, too.

His words to BJPenn.com:

"No way, it's impossible. The guys that were doing the shoot, the main guy lives in Sacramento, which the drive to Lodi is 45 minutes away. If they're paying the camera guys that much, they should pay the fighters more. Who the hell gets $50,000 for a couple days? Like I said though, it's a non-issue. Nick has met his obligations. I mean he went to Montreal! Nick is training very hard and we're trying to keep the distractions to a minimum."

Nick's past no-shows cost him a lot of money when he was pulled out of the UFC 137 main event in 2011 against Georges St. Pierre after he failed to make his scheduled appearance at two press conferences.

White has already threatened to remove Nick from his second chance at dethroning "Rush" from the top of the welterweight ladder, but, it seems cooler heads have prevailed this time around as Gracie assures everyone that Diaz has made his way to Montreal, Quebec, Canada in preparations for next week's 170-pound title fight at UFC 158.

No way this fight gets canceled after this epic war at yesterday's presser, either.