Jorge Masvidal breaks silence on Team Diaz assaulting coach in Anaheim brawl: "He's like a father"
The Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal boxing match's latest promotional press conference was marked by a brawl between Team Masvidal and Team Diaz. 'Gamebred' has now addressed the incident in which one of his coaches was attacked.
Masvidal defeated Diaz via third-round TKO in a welterweight MMA bout at UFC 244 (Nov. 2019) to become the UFC's inaugural BMF champion. The fight was stopped due to a cut over Diaz's eye, an anticlimactic stoppage that he strongly disapproved of.
Given the manner in which that matchup ended, they've consistently lobbied for a rematch against one another. However, Diaz parted ways with the UFC in Sept. 2022 to explore boxing and other options outside the organization. Meanwhile, Masvidal retired from MMA in April 2023.
That said, in March 2024, it was reported that the Diaz-Masvidal rematch would finally materialize, albeit in the boxing ring. They were to box at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, on June 1, 2024. Nevertheless, the boxing match was rescheduled and will go down at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on July 6, 2024.
Earlier tonight, the Diaz-Masvidal promotional press conference in Anaheim witnessed the fighters engage in considerable trash talk. Moreover, toward the press conference's end, Diaz suggested that 'Gamebred' face off with himself, saying:
"Square off with yourself, motherf**ker."
Check out Diaz's comments and the brawl below (29:40):
Nate Diaz seemingly refused to pose for a traditional press conference face-off with Jorge Masvidal. Meanwhile, Masvidal tried to goad the Stockton native back onstage for a face-off. Tensions flared, and the two fighters' entourages ultimately got into a brawl.
Masvidal seemed to throw a slap in the general direction of Diaz's group. Following that, one of the Team Diaz members attempted to exchange punches with Jorge Capetillo, who's one of Masvidal's boxing coaches. The coach then seemed to strike back, and a member of Diaz's team seemingly sustained damage to the face.
While Masvidal was involved in the brawl, Diaz apparently wasn't. Thankfully, security personnel intervened, and the two fighters' teams were eventually separated. During a subsequent interview with FightHype, Masvidal criticized Diaz's team and stated:
"They went after the most mature dude. He's like a father, like a uncle. They went after him. They ain't going after another young buck."
Check out Jorge Masvidal's comments below (0:18):
Nate Diaz previously utilized a similar tactic against Jorge Masvidal
Earlier this year, Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz participated in a four-city promotional tour for their boxing match. That included press conferences in New York, Miami, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. During that tour's fourth press conference, which took place in LA, Diaz seemed uninterested in posing for the press conference face-off with 'Gamebred.'
Diaz indicated that the tour, the trash talk, and the promotional experience were fun, but he was done with all of it and simply wanted to fight. Noting that he's got a team to represent, he implied that he wasn't interested in posing for another face-off with Masvidal.
Akin to his latest (June 6, 2024) press conference tactic, back in the LA press conference in April 2024, Diaz asserted that 'Gamebred' should face off with himself. He said:
"I'm out. I gotta go. Square off with yourself, motherf**ker."
Check out Diaz's comments below: