'Conor McGregor you're taking everything I worked for': The day Nate Diaz changed the UFC forever
"...Conor McGregor, you're taking everything I worked for..."
If you are an ardent fan of Mixed Martial Arts and tend to follow the UFC on a regular basis, then I can pretty much guarantee that you've definitely come across this one-liner callout that is being mentioned above and not to conclude, you probably also know to whom this famous quote belongs to.
Yep, that's right, four years ago to the day, The West Coast Gangster and Stockton's very own, Nate Diaz decided to drop a truth bomb on national television that changed the UFC forever and turned the entire game on its head.
On 19 December 2015 and after another absence of almost over a year from the Octagon, Stockton's very own Nate Diaz made his return to the UFC and for his return fight, the younger Diaz brother faced Michael Johnson in a Lightweight bout. With many fans initially considering the ring-rust factor, Diaz showcased his absolute best and with a clinical boxing performance against Johnson, the former proved that he was back where he always belonged and that inside the Octagon. A win via split decision over 'The Menace' set the table straight for Diaz and what he did next stunned the entire world.
Diaz's performance inside the Octagon on that night was truly impressive and certainly did catch the attention of several notable MMA experts from around the nation, however, if we'er looking back at that night from four years ago, it certainly wasn't Diaz's performance inside the Octagon that caught our attention and made the night memorable, rather it was what The Stockton Slugger did immediately after that stood out the most.
As he was approached by Joe Rogan for the usual post-fight Octagon interview, Nate Diaz decided to go full Nate Diaz mode and went on an absolute rant on national TV, as the latter called out the UFC's biggest star and the promotion's newest champ, that is, Conor McGregor.
Accusing McGregor of taking everything he worked for, Diaz made the bold statement of labeling himself as the "real money fight" and what eventually turned out to be the most iconic UFC callout of all time, gradually led to one of the most iconic Octagon rivalries of all time, as it didn't take 'The Notorious One' too long to respond.
Nevertheless, what Diaz did that night will certainly go down in the MMA history books and will definitely be considered the most iconic callout in the game.