American-Nigerian fighter Kamaru Usman has expressed his surprise at Henry Cejudo’s campaign for Nate Diaz to receive a UFC title shot.
Nate Diaz had called out welterweight champion Leon Edwards among others after winning a majority decision in a boxing match against Jorge Masvidal on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Diaz had fought Edwards in a non-title bout at UFC 263.
At that time, Edwards was dominating Diaz until the final minute of the fight, but he survived and won by unanimous decision.
Cejudo argued that Diaz’s name is lucrative enough to warrant a rematch with Edwards, but Kamaru Usman disagreed.
Usman said on his podcast “Pound 4 Pound” with Henry Cejudo: “Nate Diaz is at the end of his career.”
He added: “Yes, of course, he has made a great name for himself.”
Usman continued: “Big props to him for still having that bad reputation and being able to go out there and get those paydays.”
Usman further stated: “Because he goes out there and has these great fights.”
He emphasized: “But this is not Nate Diaz who is going to come in and fight world-class mixed martial artists in the UFC now. That’s ridiculous.”
Kamaru Usman Mocks Cejudo: Are You Crazy? Diaz is no longer with the UFC, but Dana White has said that the octagon will always be his home.
Cejudo asked: “So, are you saying that Nate Diaz is not a world-class fighter?”
Usman replied: “He can still fight, but he is not a world-class fighter.”
He continued: “Are you crazy? Put Nate Diaz in there with Shavkat Rakhmonov, put Nate Diaz in there with me.”
Usman added: “Put Nate Diaz in there with JDM (Jack Della Maddalena), put Nate Diaz in there with Justin Gaethje. Come on!”
Diaz has also expressed interest in fighting Jake Paul, a bout Kamaru Usman believes Diaz should take.
Usman said: “Nate Diaz, the Professional Fighters League and Jake Paul are offering you $15 million to fight him in MMA.”
He concluded: “I actually think he wins that fight. Big props to Nate Diaz, I think he actually wins a fight like that.”
