Chael Sonnen shares his prediction for Leon Edwards vs Nate Diaz at UFC 263
Chael Sonnen has revealed his prediction for the UFC 263 main card fight between top-ranked welterweight Leon Edwards and the iconic Stockton brawler Nate Diaz. His pick may well surprise fans of the sport.
Edwards vs Diaz is set to be the first five-round non-title fight undercard event in UFC history. The fight has huge stakes, with Dana White implying that the winner will be next to face the UFC welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman.
Chael Sonnen's prediction
Chael Sonnen revealed who he believes will come out on top in a recent video posted to his YouTube channel. His prediction went as follows:
"My official prediction. Nate Diaz vs Leon Edwards. I'm going Diaz. I'm going Diaz and I want you guys to hear me out why because that's very unlikely. In all fairness, that's very unlikely."
'Nate's one of our favorite guys. Nate's a straight up badass. Leon hasn't lost in going on five years right. Last loss was to the champ. So why do I go with Nate?"
Diaz's underdog status
Chael Sonnen acknowledged that Diaz is an undeniable underdog in this matchup regardless of how you look at it. He brought particular attention to the fact that Diaz has once again had an extended period of time away from the UFC octagon.
"Look, one thing that Nate has against him, every time I've talked to you about Nate, for the last five times I've talked to you about Nate, it's the same thing against him. Which is the layoff. I don't know why he does this. I don't like that he does this. I think someday he's going to regret having done this."
Despite this glaring disadvantage for Diaz, Sonnen is still picking him to win this fight. He has confessed that there is some level of nostalgia bias that is leading him to make such a pick.
"There's some nostalgia. You pick a Diaz boy, there's some nostalgia. Is there some home cooking in my predictions here? Yeah."
But Sonnen's primary reason for picking Nate Diaz is due to the welterweight veteran's statement about feeling in incredible shape. Sonnen does acknowledge that it's not a choice based on solid reasoning. However, he has a hunch that Diaz is better prepared than ever before.
"He's doing certain things with his diet. He's doing certain things with his training. He said I'm getting younger, I'm getting faster, I'm getting better. He's never spoke that way before. Nate, as a matter of a fact has never hyped a damn thing... This is the first time ever he's said I'm feeling better, I'm getting better."