Díaz is a common Spanish surname meaning "son of Diago" variant of Diego. The name accounts for ~0.74% of the Spanish population, ranking 14th most frequently found surname in both 1999 and 2004 (Mateos & Tucker 2008, OcioTotal 1999). Compared to the most popular Spanish surname of those years, García, which accounted for ~3.48% of the population.

Variants and related names[link]

There is minor evidence that Díez may be equivalent to Diaz, in the form of Spanish language listing of most frequent surnames in 1999 Spain (OcioTotal 1999). However, a 2008 in-press academic manuscript about Spanish naming in 2004 suggests otherwise, listing statistics for "Diaz" and "Diez" separately (Mateos & Tucker 2008).

In relation to descent from the Biblical names James and Jacob, it has been surmised that Diaz is a derivation of Diego from Iago (Smith 1986), Sant Iagus. A second source suggests Díaz as being derived from a Gothic form of the paternal genitive of Dia, as in "Dia's child", or Diag, Diago or Diego (Dixon 1857). Dias translates into Son of Jacob

The surname is cognate with the Portuguese language surname Dias.

Usage[link]

Díaz and the angelicized form Diaz appear to be surnames only, without evidence for use as given names. Use of Díaz may arise through Anglicization of Portuguese language Dias, as in the case of Bartolomeu Dias.

Many examples of the surnames Díaz exist among historically notable people as a patronymic of Diego. Among the earliest such examples is El Cid, whose real name as Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, and whose father's given name was Diego (Catholic Encyclopedia 1913).

There is at least one instance of use as a single name, the former Norwegian rap artist Diaz, who was born to a Spanish father and Norwegian mother; his birth name was "Andrés Rafael Díaz".^{[citation needed]}

Frequency[link]

In Latin America Díaz was among the top 25% of surnames in use based on a study conducted in 1987 by the Institute for Genealogy and History for Latin America (De Platt 1996, pages 31–32).

Spanish surnames, including Díaz, are found more abundantly in Southern Italy than other non-Italian surnames as a result of the domination of Italy by Spain during the 17th century (Fucilla 1949).

The following matrix contains available information on the frequency of this surname in various countries across a span of years.

Reference codes, see #References: (a)=OcioTotal 1999, (b)=Mateos & Tucker 2008, (c)=Longley, et al., (d)=United States Census Bureau 1995, (e)=United States Census Bureau 2000

Several assessed countries have shown no instances of this surname, among these being Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and Scotland (Bowie 2003; Longley, et al.).

Transliteration[link]

The Diaz name Translates into several different meanings [1.Wise Man] Diaz in many different languages is pronounced Different In the Italian root meaning is [vecchi] in full meaning [Delvecchio]coming from Italy. Which later Translated into Diaz In Spain.Then Traveled to Mexico making its way Here to America From Spain and Mexico migrants.

Notable people sharing the surname[link]

Owing to the common nature of this surname, there are many notable people who share it. Among the most notable of these are:

• El Cid (11th century), born Rodrigo Díaz, conqueror and subsequent ruler of Valencia, Spain
• Bartholomew Diaz (15th century), the anglicized form of the name, who was the first European known to have sailed around the Southern tip of Africa
• Bernal Díaz del Castillo (16th century), who provided an eye witness narrative for the destruction of the Aztec Empire by Spanish conquistadors
• José E. Díaz (19th century), hero of the Paraguayan War and appearing on the 100 Paraguayan guaraní coin
• Porfirio Díaz (19th century), President of Mexico following the French intervention in Mexico
• Armando Diaz (20th century), Italian Supreme Commander during World War I
• Paquito Diaz (20th century), veteran Filipino actor and brother of Romy
• Romy Diaz (20th century), veteran Filipino actor and brother of Paquito
• Gloria Diaz (20th century), the first Filipino to bring home the Miss Universe crown.
• Joe Diaz (20thCentury), One of first Mexican-Americans to attend University of California at Davis and Berkeley; Officer in the USMC WWII; Executive, Shell Chemical Co.
• Matthew Diaz (20th century), American military lawyer responsible for the release of the identities of detainees at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp to the Center for Constitutional Rights
• Javier Fabian Diaz (21st century), Latin Guitarist
• Cameron Diaz (21st century), Actress
• Diaz (musician) (born 1976 as "Andres Rafael Diaz Rosa"), a rapper from Jessheim, Norway
• Marco Diaz di Fujiko (poet-singer-speaker) (born in Italy, live in Bologna), the voice of Fujiko meet "Graziano Cernoia" in "Volk" the first book 2008, Diamando Perlano dead 2011
• Nick Diaz (21st century), mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, brother of Nate
• Nate Diaz (21st century), mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, brother of Nick
• Oliver E. Diaz, Jr. (21st century), Justice, Mississippi Supreme Court
• Junot Díaz (21st century), Dominican-American writer who received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2008
• Raquel Roxanne Diaz, television personality and the host of 106 and Park on BET
• Jonny Diaz, American contemporary Christian musician originally from Lakeland, Florida
• Alyssa Diaz (21st century), Actress
• Patricia Díaz Perea, professional triathlete
• Laura A. Diaz, American contemporary Christian Author originally from Stockton,California

See also[link]

• Spanish naming customs

References[link]

External links[link]

• A history of the Díaz surname compiled by the Institute for Genealogy and History for Latin America is available for a fee. See pages 38 and 39 of http://books.google.com/books?id=xxcSboo5KTAC for more information.

Timothy Ray Bradley, Jr. (born August, 29 1983) is an undefeated American professional boxer. A native to the Coachella Valley. Born in Cathedral City, California, and training out of Indio, California. He is the current WBO Light Welterweight Champion and former two-time WBC Light Welterweight Champion.

Professional career[link]

Light Welterweight[link]

Bradley had his first professional bout on the 20th of August 2004, knocking out Francisco Martinez in the second round. In his rise through the ranks, he gained the WBC Youth World Welterweight and Light Welterweight crowns. He also beat IBF Lightweight Champion Miguel Vazquez by a unanimous ten round decision. Bradley finally got his chance for the title when José Luis Castillo failed to make weight in a title eliminator for the full WBC Light Welterweight belt. He then won the WBC Light Welterweight title by defeating British fighter Junior Witter in England.^[1]

WBC/WBO Unification[link]

On 4 April 2009, Bradley fought Kendall Holt to unify his WBC and Holt's WBO titles. Bradley was dropped in the first round by a huge left hook and was badly hurt but regrouped and outboxed Holt for most of the fight, before being sent to the canvas again in the 12th round. Nonetheless, Bradley got up and finished the fight. He won the fight by unanimous decision and became the new WBO Champion.^[2]

Bradley vs. Campbell[link]

Several days after his unification bout with Holt, Bradley was stripped of his WBC Light Welterweight title, because of failure to fight Devon Alexander, his mandatory challenger.^[3] As a result, the title became vacant and Alexander stopped Witter at the end of eight rounds to win the belt. The Alexander-Witter fight was on the undercard of Bradley's August 1 fight with Nate Campbell in Bradley's hometown of Palm Springs. Campbell,a former lightweight champion, was coming up in weight after he failed to make the lightweight limit in his last fight. Bradley's fight with Campbell only lasted three rounds after Campbell chose not to continue when a cut formed over and behind his left eye. Bradley was awarded the TKO victory, but the verdict was later changed.^[4] A replay showed that the cut was caused by an accidental clash of heads. The rules states, that if a fight is stopped by a cut caused by an accidental headbutt before the end of round four, it should be called a no contest. The California State Athletic Commission therefore changed the result.

Bradley vs. Peterson[link]

On December 5, Bradley took on Mandatory Challenger Lamont Peterson. Bradley dominated the fight, knocking Peterson down in the third round and went on to win a lopsided unanimous decision.

Welterweight[link]

Bradley vs. Abregu[link]

In his HBO Debut, Bradley was scheduled to face Luis Abregu in a nontitle bout at welterweight. However, Bradley's promoter told ESPN.com that he had made a deal with Golden Boy Promotions to fight Interim title holder and knockout artist Marcos Maidana at the Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage, California, only a few miles from Bradley's hometown of Palm Springs. The fight was scheduled to take place on June 19, but due to a back injury to Marcos Maidana the fight was postponed. So he went back to his original plan to move up in weight and the fight with Abregu was back on for July 17 at the Agua Caliente Casino.^[5] Although clearly out-sized, Bradley proved too quick and too skilled for the hard-hitting Abregu winning by unanimous decision, with the judges' scorecards reading 119–111, 118–112 and 117–113. At the end of the fight, Bradley openly made a challenge to pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao, calling for him to "Come break down this wall." Bradley also called out Devon Alexander, Amir Khan and Marcos Maidana.

Return to Light Welterweight[link]

Bradley vs. Alexander[link]

On January 29, 2011, Timothy Bradley defended his WBO Light Welterweight title in a unification fight against fellow light welterweight title holder, WBC Champion Devon Alexander, at the Silverdome Arena in Detroit. Bradley won via 10th round technical decision.

As stipulated in the contract of the fight against Devon Alexander, Bradley would be given a $1.3 million payday regardless of whomever he selected as his opponent for his next fight. While the public wanted Bradley to fight WBA Light Welterweight Champion Amir Khan and unify the division,^{[citation needed]} Bradley opted to not take the fight.

Stripped of WBC Title[link]

Timothy Bradley was stripped of his title as he refused to fight World Boxing Association Light Welterweight Champion Amir Khan. Many have speculated that Bradley was not satisfied with the $1.3 million to fight a boxer of Khan's caliber, although this was Bradley highest pay day in his entire career so far. Also, he had admitted that it was too risky to fight Amir Khan, stating What if I lose then I am out the sweep-stake to fight pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao for 7.5 million dollars on American radio show Leave It In The Ring.^[6] Bradley's refusal to take the fight led to a falling out between him and his promoter Gary Shaw. Subsequently he was stripped of the WBC title due to inactivity.^[7]

Joins Top Rank[link]

Timothy Bradley joined Top Rank and made his debut with them November 2011 when he defeated Joel Casamayor on the under card of Marquez-Pacquiao III.

Bradley vs. Casamayor[link]

On November 12, 2011, Bradley defended his WBO Light Welterweight title against former lightweight titlist Joel Casamayor, 40, on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez III. Bradley won by TKO in the eighth round in making his case for a shot at Pacquiao.

Bradley vs. Pacquiao[link]

Bradley will now fight Manny Pacquiao on June 9, 2012.

Professional boxing record[link]

28 Wins (12 Knockouts, 16 decisions), 0 Losses, 0 Draws, 1 No Contest[8]
Res.	Record	Opponnent	Type	Rd., Time	Date	Location	Notes
N/A	N/A	Manny Pacquiao	-	? (12)	2012-06-09	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada	For WBO Welterweight title.
Win	28–0 1 NC	Joel Casamayor	TKO	8 (12), 2:59	2011-11-12	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBO Light Welterweight title.
Win	27–0 1 NC	Devon Alexander	TD	10 (12), 3:00	2011-01-29	Silverdome, Pontiac, Michigan	Retained WBO & won WBC Light Welterweight title.
Win	26–0 1 NC	Luis Abregu	UD	12	2010-07-17	Agua Caliente Casino, Rancho Mirage, California
Win	25–0 1 NC	Lamont Peterson	UD	12	2009-11-14	Agua Caliente Casino, Rancho Mirage, California	Retained WBO Light Welterweight title.
NC	24–0 1 NC	Nate Campbell	NC	3 (12), 3:00	2009-08-01	Agua Caliente Casino, Rancho Mirage, California	Retained WBO Light Welterweight title. Fight stopped due to Campbell's cut over his left eye.
Win	24–0	Kendall Holt	UD	12	2009-04-04	Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec	Retained WBC & won WBO Light Welterweight title.
Win	23–0	Edner Cherry	UD	12	2008-09-13	Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, Biloxi, Mississippi	Retained WBC Light Welterweight title.
Win	22–0	Junior Witter	SD	12	2008-05-10	Nottingham Arena, Nottingham	Won WBC Light Welterweight title.
Win	21–0	Miguel Vazquez	UD	10	2007-07-27	Omega Products International, Corona, California	Retained WBC Youth World Light Welterweight title.
Win	20–0	Donald Camarena	UD	10	2007-06-01	Chumash Casino, Santa Ynez, California
Win	19–0	Nasser Athumani	TKO	5 (10), 1:35	2007-04-13	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	18–0	Manuel Garnica	UD	8	2007-02-02	Chumash Casino, Santa Ynez, California	Retained WBC Youth World Light Welterweight title.
Win	17–0	Jaime Rangel	TD	8 (8), 1:54	2006-12-01	Chumash Casino, Santa Ynez, California	The fight was stopped due to Rangel's cut over right eye and he was unable to continue.
Win	16–0	Alfonso Sanchez	KO	1 (8), 2:44	2006-10-16	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	15–0	Martin Ramirez	RTD	5 (8), 3:00	2006-08-18	Omega Products International, Corona, California
Win	14–0	Arturo Urena	TKO	3 (10), 0:27	2006-06-23	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California	Retained WBC Youth World Light Welterweight title.
Win	13–0	Jesus Abel Santiago	KO	6 (8), ?	2006-05-13	Antelope Valley Fairgrounds, Lancaster, California
Win	12–0	Eli Addison	UD	8	2006-03-31	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California	Retained WBC Youth World Light Welterweight title.
Win	11–0	Rafael Ortiz	RTD	2 (10), 3:00	2006-02-17	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California	Retained WBC Youth World Light Welterweight title.
Win	10–0	Jorge Alberto Padilla	RTD	9 (10), 3:00	2005-11-21	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	9–0	Francisco Rincon	UD	10	2005-09-23	Omega Products International, Corona, California	Won vacant WBC Youth World Light Welterweight title.
Win	8–0	Juan Yoani Cervantes	UD	6	2005-08-26	Omega Products International, Corona, California
Win	7–0	Marcos Andre Rocha Costa	TKO	5 (6), 2:15	2005-07-21	Athletic Club, Los Angeles, California
Win	6–0	Justo Almazan	UD	6	2005-06-03	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	5–0	Ramon Ortiz	KO	3 (6), 2:49	2005-04-25	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	4–0	Carlos Parra	KO	1 (4), 1:59	2005-03-28	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	3–0	Luis Medina	TKO	1 (4), 0:18	2004-11-22	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	2–0	Raul Nunez	UD	4	2004-10-29	Doubletree Hotel, Ontario, California
Win	1–0	Francisco Martinez	TKO	2 (4), 1:17	2004-08-20	Omega Products International, Corona, California	Bradley's professional debut.

See also[link]

• List of male boxers
• List of current world boxing champions

References[link]

External links[link]

• Professional boxing record for Timothy Bradley from BoxRec

Nick Diaz
Born	Nicholas Robert Diaz (1983-08-02) August 2, 1983 (age 28) Stockton, California, United States
Other names	El Diablo
Nationality	American [1]
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	169 lb (77 kg; 12 st 1 lb)
Division	Lightweight (2007) Welterweight (2001–2006) – (2008–present)
Reach	76 in (193 cm)
Style	Boxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sambo[2]
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	Stockton, California
Team	Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu El Niño Sports Combat Sports Academy Fairtex Gym
Trainer	Cesar Gracie, Richard Perez, Val Ignatov
Rank	Black Belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu
Years active	2001–present
Professional boxing record
Total	1
Wins	1
Mixed martial arts record
Total	35
Wins	26
By knockout	13
By submission	8
By decision	5
Losses	8
By knockout	2
By decision	6
No contests	1
Other information
Notable relatives	Nate Diaz, brother
Website	diazbrothers.com
Boxing record from Boxrec
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: 18 September 2011

Nicholas Robert Diaz (born August 2, 1983) is a American mixed martial artist of Mexican descent.^[3] He is the former Strikeforce Welterweight Champion, WEC and IFC Welterweight Champion. He has competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Pride Fighting Championships and Elite Xtreme Combat. Diaz was promoted to black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by Cesar Gracie on May 8, 2007. Diaz trains at the Diaz brother's Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Lodi, California. Diaz holds the distinction of having never been submitted, and has been finished by strikes only once in 35 fights. He is currently ranked the #4 welterweight in the world by Sherdog, ESPN, MMAWeekly,^[4] and USA Today.^[5]

Biography[link]

Diaz was born in Stockton , California. He is the older brother of UFC fighter Nate Diaz. He went to Tokay High School in Lodi for one year before dropping out. While a freshman, he was a member of the swimming team. Diaz has stated in the past that he is thankful his mother got him into swimming classes because swimming is one of the main reasons why his cardio is so impressive during his fights. Diaz has also said on multiple occasions that he had a hard childhood and grew up without his biological father.

Diaz originally started training in martial arts because he was being bullied by other teenagers who were bigger than he was. He then watched the UFC for the first time and soon wanted to be able to fight in the organization. His younger brother, Nathan is also a professional MMA fighter in the Lightweight division and the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 5. Nick also regularly competes in triathlons as part of his training. Diaz started training in Sambo at the age of 16 under a Bulgarian National Sambo Champion Val Ignatov.^[2] In his recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Diaz stated that he still trains Sambo under the same coach hence the reason his ground game is different from other MMA fighters that only train in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.^[2]

Mixed martial arts career[link]

After years of practicing various combats sports and martial arts, Diaz became a professional mixed martial arts fighter in 2001 just after his 18th birthday and won his first fight, submitting Mike Wick with a triangle choke at IFC Warriors Challenge 15. Diaz would become a champion in just his second professional fight, defeating Chris Lytle for the IFC United States Welterweight title in July 2002 at IFC Warriors Challenge 17.

Diaz was then invited to participate in Ultimate Athlete's King of the Mountain, a single-night tournament that took place two months later. He won his first two fights but eventually lost in the finals to Jeremy Jackson (fighter) by TKO. Diaz would fight in Warriors Quest and Shooto against Harris "Hitman" Sarmiento and Kuniyoshi Hironaka respectively before winning the WEC's Welterweight Title in 2003 at WEC 6, submitting Joe Hurley with a kimura.

Diaz returned to defend his IFC Welterweight belt against the man who defeated him one year earlier, Jeremy Jackson at IFC Warriors Challenge 18. This time around it was Diaz who was able to get the win, winning by TKO in the first round. Taking notice of his success, the UFC signed Diaz over the summer and he made his debut at UFC 44, completing the trilogy against Jeremy Jackson and submitting him with an armbar in the last round of the back and forth fight that Diaz appeared to be winning on the scorecards.

Rise[link]

Diaz returned to the Octagon at UFC 47, set to take on highly-touted Welterweight Robbie Lawler. Lawler was a heavy favorite coming into the fight but it was Diaz who took the offensive, chasing Lawler around the cage for the majority of the bout. In the second round, Diaz taunted Lawler, who swung wildly and missed, allowing Diaz to connect with a right hook that knocked Lawler out. Diaz was then matched up with Karo Parisyan at UFC 49, but ended up losing a hard-fought split decision. He rebounded with wins over Drew Fickett at UFC 51 and Koji Oishi at UFC 53 before losing for the second time in the UFC at the hands of The Ultimate Fighter Middleweight winner Diego Sanchez at The Ultimate Fighter 2 Finale.

The two came into the fight with a good amount of bad blood between them. They reportedly exchanged heated e-mails before and after the official signing of the fight, which was spurred on by Diaz's public opinion that Sanchez and the rest of The Ultimate Fighter participants were being given an easier path to the top compared to the rest of the fighters in the UFC.

Things went to another level in the locker room before the fight when Diaz taunted Sanchez and threw a shoe at him.[3] Diaz was obviously confident coming into the bout but was unable to achieve success in the match, ultimately losing to Sanchez by unanimous decision. During the televised post-fight interview in the ring, Diaz continued the controversy by declaring that he respected Sanchez fighting ability but did not think he deserved to be there, despite Sanchez's win.

Diaz's next fight was against Joe Riggs at UFC 57. Similar to his treatment of Sanchez, Diaz made sure that he taunted his opponent plenty before their fight starting at the official press conference at the event in which Diaz confronted Riggs and the two exchanged words. They continued their conversation at the official weigh-ins in which both fighters had to be separated by UFC president Dana White and other officials present.

Riggs prevailed in a hard-fought battle, winning by unanimous decision and giving Diaz his second straight loss. After the fight, the two were taken to the hospital for observation and post-fight tests. It was there that Diaz and Riggs had an altercation, but when the police arrived no charges were laid.

Diaz lost his third consecutive match in a unanimous decision to Sean Sherk at UFC 59. The UFC subsequently terminated his contract and released him during the spring of 2006.

Return to UFC[link]

Diaz returned to his hometown of Stockton and participated in the International Cage Fighting Organization's inaugural event, defeating Ray Steinbeiss by split decision. Diaz was slated to fight in his hometown again against John Alessio when he received an unexpected call the night before the fight from the UFC asking to fill in for an ill Thiago Alves at UFC 62.

After Alessio pulled out, Diaz took advantage of the opportunity, submitting Josh Neer in the third round. Seemingly back in the UFC, Diaz stopped newcomer Gleison Tibau with strikes in his next fight at UFC 65. However, even after the win and the reassurance that the UFC would give him another fight, Diaz decided to sign with the Gracie Fighting Championships and leave the UFC.^[6] GFC had Diaz scheduled to fight Thomas Denny in January 2007, but due to poor ticket sales the event was ultimately scrapped.^[6]

Pride FC[link]

Diaz was signed to a two-fight deal with Pride Fighting Championships with the first scheduled to be against current Lightweight champion Takanori Gomi in a non-title fight on February 24 in Las Vegas. Pride 33 was Diaz's first fight in the Pride organization and at the weight of 160 lb. While Gomi started the fight strong, once knocking Diaz to the ground, and twice ending up in his guard, the Californian dominated the standup battle with his unorthodox style, picking his opponent apart with quick and accurate jabs and looping punches.^[7] At the end of the first round, apparently due to poor cardio on Gomi's part, the Japanese fighter was clearly stunned, throwing much wilder punches and barely maintaining his defense. At one point though, the fight was stopped to check a cut suffered under Diaz' eye. The second stanza saw a continuation of wild punches by Gomi, then eventually taking the fight to the ground and leaving himself open to a Gogoplata submission by Diaz and tapping at 1:46 of the round.^[7] This was the second successful Gogoplata attempt in Pride's history (the first performed by Shinya Aoki on Joachim Hansen less than two months earlier at Pride's New Year's event).

On April 10, 2007, the Nevada State Athletic Commission announced that Diaz failed the drug test that was taken shortly before his win over Takanori Gomi, testing positive for marijuana. The NSAC declared the fight a "No Contest" and suspended him for 6 months with a fine of 20% of his earnings ($3,000) won from the fight against Gomi. The Commission felt that the result of Diaz's THC test, an enormous 175, was a contributing factor in his performance during the fight. Commission Chairman Dr. Tony Alamo said that while a result of 15 is considered positive, the NSAC has a threshold of 50 for athletes. He also believes they "feel very comfortable that everyone that tests positive in Nevada is truly positive."

Dr. Alamo went on to say, "Mr. Diaz was 145. This creates a unique situation. I was there at this fight and believe that you were intoxicated and... that it made you numb to the pain. Did it help you win? I think it did." Despite Diaz being surrounded by other athletes and video cameras for several hours before the fight, Alamo gave no explanation for why he believed Diaz had used marijuana in the hours preceding the event. Diaz himself dismissed the assertion that marijuana was a Performance-enhancing drug, or that he was smoking it prior to the fight.^[8][9][10]

EliteXC[link]

Diaz made his debut for EliteXC in Hawaii on September 15, 2007 on Showtime. He won a hard fought split decision over his opponent Mike Aina.^[11] MMA Weekly reported that Nick Diaz signed a two year deal with EliteXC and in his next fight, fought KJ Noons for the vacant 160 pound title. Once the fight began, the two exchanged rather evenly on the feet until Noons dropped Diaz with a well timed right counterpunch. Diaz attempted several takedowns, all of which were stuffed by Noons, on one occasion with a swift right knee which opened up a notable gash on Diaz's face, eventually resulting in a loss via doctor stoppage due to multiple cuts on his forehead. A disappointed Diaz left the arena immediately and on his way out he flipped off the doctor from the arena entrance and shoved the camera out of his face.^[12] Interestingly, he stated in pre-fight interviews that the only way he was going to lose this fight was from a cut above his eye.^[13]

After losing the Noons fight via-doc stoppage due to a cut, Diaz had surgery and had the bone filed down on his eyebrows to prevent any bad cuts in future bouts. Diaz came into his next fight at EliteXC's "Return of the KING" event in Honolulu, Hawaii against Muhsin Corbbrey 9 pounds over the weight limit.^[14] Diaz earned a tough win over Corbbrey, following the main event an altercation between Nick and his brother Nate broke out with KJ Noons and his corner. EliteXC executives asked Diaz to come to the ring and make a statement about a possible title rematch with Noons. Noons, a Native of Hawaii, asked the crowd their opinion, resulting in an echo of boos for Diaz.^[15] After Nick spoke over the microphone to Noons, saying, "don't be scared homie,"^[16] Carl Noons, KJ's father, lunged at him prompting Nate Diaz to throw a water bottle at the elder Noons.^[17] The Diaz brothers were quickly escorted out of the cage by a group of security staff. During interviews the next day Nick claimed Carl was intoxicated and overreacting. Meanwhile Carl claimed his incident was prompted by the thrown bottle. Video replay of the event showed Nate throwing the bottle after Carl jumped at Nick. No one was injured as the Diaz brothers left the arena entrance "throwing the bird" to the fans and Noons' corner.^[18]

Nick went on to face well-traveled veteran Thomas "Wildman" Denny at the EliteXC Event "Unfinished Business" in Nick's hometown of Stockton, California. After a sluggish start to the fight, Diaz found his range and punished Denny during the latter half of the First Round.^[19] Diaz continued to keep the fight standing and maintained a high-paced tempo for the remainder of the fight, earning an impressive TKO victory over the veteran Denny 0:30 into Round Two.^[19] Diaz was rumoured to have a rematch against the current EliteXC Lightweight Champion KJ Noons, airing on CBS October 4, 2008. However, KJ Noons and his camp refused to accept the match. Mark Dion, KJ's manager was quoted as saying "As far as Nick Diaz, he's not the No. 1 contender out there.".^[20] Diaz was scheduled to face Eddie Alvarez for the EliteXC 160 pound title on November 8, 2008 before the company ceased operations.^[21]

Strikeforce and Dream[link]

Diaz was victorious in Dream 3, defeating Katsuya Inoue by corner stoppage (TKO) in the first round.^[22] With Strikeforce's acquisition of ProElite's assets, CEO Scott Coker had announced that Nick will face off against MMA legend Frank Shamrock at a catchweight of 179 lb, at their upcoming event Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz in Shamrock's hometown of San Jose on April 11 at the HP Pavilion.^[23] Nick was successful in the fight, defeating Shamrock via TKO, due to strikes in the second round. Throughout the fight, Diaz was dominant in all areas using effective positioning on the ground, once mounting Frank in the end of the first round and then finally finishing in the second round due to a body shot crumpling Frank to the mat and then following up with punches before referee John McCarthy called a halt to the bout. In the interview he stated "It's hard to hate the guy, he's been doing what I've been wanting to do and saying what I've wanted to say for a long time".

At Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields Diaz met Scott Smith at a catchweight of 180 pounds. Although Smith took Diaz down once in the first round, Diaz controlled the majority of the bout with his superior boxing, utilizing his reach, stalking jabs and repeatedly punishing Smith with hooks to the body, twice dropping him in the second and third round. Upon landing the body shot that dropped Smith in the third round, Smith assumed a turtle position and Diaz took his back until securing a rear naked choke to finish the bout at 1:41 of the final round.

It was announced that Diaz would be fighting Joe Riggs ^[24] at Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg taking place on August 15, in which would have been a rematch of their first fight that took place at UFC 57: Couture vs Liddell 3, in which both fighters fought in the cage and then again at the local hospital later in the evening.^[25] The fight would have been for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship but, Joe Riggs had to pull out of the bout due to an adverse reaction to a drug. Diaz was then scheduled to instead face Jay Hieron for the Welterweight Championship.^[26] This fight has since been canceled due to Diaz's failure to attain his license after not attending a pre-fight drug test.^[27] Jesse Taylor replaced Diaz and the title was no longer on the line, Hieron defeated Taylor by unanimous decision.

Diaz faced Strikeforce newcomer Marius Žaromskis to crown the first Strikeforce Welterweight Champion on January 30, 2010 at Strikeforce: Miami.^[28] Žaromskis came out aggressively and the two men exchanged on the feet until Diaz tied his opponent up in the clinch and landed numerous knees to Žaromskis' right leg. Diaz then scored a takedown and looked for a guillotine choke – quickly shrugged off by his opponent. The two men continued to exchange, with Diaz utilizing his unorthodox boxing skills, until rocked by a Žaromskis left hook and falling to his back. Žaromskis landed few effective shots while Diaz was turtled on the floor, allowing him to recover and stand back up. In the few remaining minutes, Diaz opened up with his boxing range, tagging Žaromskis cleanly several times with combos composed of jabs, hooks and seamless bodyshots; forcing him against the side of the cage where he landed a solid uppercut and continued to punish his opponent leading to the referee to stop the contest at 4:38 of the first round. Diaz was then crowned the inaugural Strikeforce Welterweight Champion.

Diaz defeated Hayato Sakurai by submission (armbar) in a non-title bout at Dream 14.^[29] Diaz defeated KJ Noons in a rematch of their 2007 bout for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship. Diaz won via Unanimous Decision (48–47, 49–47, 49–46). Diaz defeated Evangelista Santos who had an 18–13^[30] MMA record going into the bout on January 29, 2011 at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg via armbar in the second round.^[31] Diaz defeated Paul Daley at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley via TKO (punches) at 4:57 of round 1, and became the first Strikeforce fighter to successfully defend the welterweight belt 3 times in a row.^[32]

Return to UFC[link]

UFC president Dana White stated that a matchup between Diaz and UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre was a possible consideration.^[33] Diaz and St.Pierre were rumored to be the next coaches for TUF 14 (The Ultimate Fighter) reality show, but the show debuted on September 21, 2011, with Michael Bisping and Jason Miller as coaches. UFC president Dana White confirmed via Twitter that Diaz would face GSP at UFC 137 at the Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 29, 2011. Nick Diaz vacated his Strikeforce Welterweight Championship title prior to his bout with Georges St-Pierre ^[34] Dana White made the decision to take Nick Diaz out of the fight and replace him with Carlos Condit, due to Diaz missing multiple flights for a press event to support the fight.^[35] It was announced that Diaz would fight B.J. Penn in the main event at his original fight card, UFC 137.^[36] Diaz won via unanimous decision. Diaz called out Georges St. Pierre in the post-fight interview, who was scheduled to fight Carlos Condit at the same event but had been forced out of the bout with a knee injury.

Following his successful return, Diaz was expected to face Georges St. Pierre for the UFC welterweight title at UFC 143 during Super Bowl weekend.^[37] However, due to a ACL injury sustained by St-Pierre, Diaz faced Carlos Condit in the main event, with the winner being awarded an Interim UFC Welterweight Championship.^[38] Condit defeated Diaz via a unanimous decision. After the fight, Diaz said that he would retire from MMA.^[39] After the event UFC President Dana White said that he believes Diaz will fight again.^[40] It was reported that an immediate rematch with Condit was to be scheduled,^[41] but was cancelled when Diaz tested positive for marijuana metabolites in a post-fight drug test.^[42] The Nevada State Athletic Commission temporarily suspended Diaz shortly after the positive test, pending a full disciplinary hearing.^[43]

It was announced at the hearing in May 2012 that Diaz was suspended for one year, retroactive to February 4, 2012, and fined 30 percent of his fight purse earned from the Condit bout. Diaz will be eligible to return to MMA competition in February 2013.^[44]

Diaz was set to take on Braulio Estima in a grappling match at the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo on May 12, 2012.^[45] However, Diaz no-showed the event. Hours following the event, Diaz was seen liking a YouTube video featuring Estima's reaction on Diaz's no-show, calling it "disrespectful." The day after the event Diaz alleged that Estima failed to make weight within the agreed upon timeframe prior to the fight and also alleged that the promoters of the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo failed to make good on their claims of donating proceeds from the fight to charity.^[46]

Fighting style[link]

Diaz is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Cesar Gracie whom he has been training with since he was a teenager. He is accomplished in both gi and no-gi jiu-jitsu. Some of the major titles he has won include the US Purple Belt Open in 2004 and a Pan American Brown Belt Medium Weight Division title in 2005.^[47] He also owns a victory over renowned grappler Jorge Patino in competition via kneebar. He is known for having a modified BJJ style that suits his MMA career very well. Diaz lists his favorite submission as the kimura.^[48] He is widely known for his impressive closed guard which he frequently uses in his fights. Diaz currently teaches jiu-jitsu at his and brother Nathan's school in Lodi, CA.

Diaz is also a professional boxer and fights in the Super Middleweight weight class. He made his professional debut in April 2005 against Alfonso Rocha at the Radisson Hotel in Sacramento, California.^[49] Diaz was victorious, winning by unanimous decision after four rounds. He has not fought since. Nick and Nate Diaz are now being trained by former WBA and WBC World Champion Luisito Espinosa and are training with the highly skilled Jason "Gumby" Robison. Nick has also recently been training with Olympic Boxing Gold Medalist Andre Ward.^[50]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Mixed Martial Arts[link]

• Strikeforce
  • Strikeforce Welterweight Championship (One time; first)
  • Most consecutive Welterweight title defenses in Strikeforce history (Three)
  • Most successful Welterweight title defenses in Strikeforce history (Three)
  • 2010 Fight of the Year vs. K.J. Noons on October 9
  • 2010 Male Fighter of the Year

• World Extreme Cagefighting
  • WEC Welterweight Championship (One time; first)

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (One time)

• International Fighting Championships
  • IFC U.S. Welterweight Championship (One time)
  • One successful title defense

• Inside Fights
  • Fight of the Year (2007) vs. Takanori Gomi on February 24
  • Fight of the Year (2010) vs. K.J. Noons on October 9
  • Fight of the Year (2011) vs. Paul Daley on April 9

Mixed martial arts record[link]

Boxing record[link]

Result	Record	Opponent	Method	Date	Round	Location	Notes
xWin	1–0	Alfonso Rocha	UD	02005-04-29April 29, 2005	4	Radisson Hotel, Sacramento, California	Boxing Debut

See also[link]

• List of current mixed martial arts champions

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Professional MMA record for Nick Diaz from Sherdog
• Professional boxing record for Nick Diaz from BoxRec