Kevin Holland reveals funny anecdote involving Nate Diaz, Dana White, and the inception of Power Slap league
Kevin Holland recently narrated a funny story about how Nate Diaz slapping Dana White may have led to the creation of the Power Slap League.
For context, the UFC announced Diaz's highly anticipated rematch against Conor McGregor in June 2016. The fight was booked for UFC 202 in August at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Despite McGregor and Diaz being among MMA's biggest superstars, White decided to take the event's marketing a notch further.
The UFC CEO reportedly asked Diaz to slap him after the UFC 202 announcement as part of the event's promotional efforts. During an episode of the UFC Unfiltered Podcast, White explained:
"We had just left and were heading back to the arena, and we were on Crenshaw, and there was a place called the Turf Motel... It just came to me; I said pull the truck over; I want Nate to slap me. And Nate looked at me like, what the f**k?... And then we pulled over, and he started slapping away."
Watch the full video below:
It appears the original slapping video did so well on social media that White decided he wanted to start a slap-fighting league of his own. In a recent episode of the Real Eyes Recognize Podcast, Holland explained how the Power Slap League came into being and said:
"You know how this all got invented, right? Bro, when Diaz and Dana did the deal and when Diaz slapped Dana, it did so many numbers that Dana then had the idea to come up with the Power Slap. This is a true story."
UFC legend predicts potential Nate Diaz vs. Jake Paul MMA fight
UFC icon Matt Brown recently shared his thoughts on a potential Nate Diaz vs. Jake Paul fight under MMA rules.
Paul has been eager to fight Diaz in the cage for a while and has called out the Stockton native multiple times over the past year. 'The Problem Child' is expected to make his PFL debut in 2024 and offered Diaz a whopping $10 million to face him in the PFL's Smart Cage.
While Diaz doesn't seem keen on the matchup, many believe that the two could fight in the cage sometime down the line due to the financial success of their boxing match in August, which Paul won via unanimous decision.
In a recent interview, Brown surprisingly predicted Paul to beat the former UFC star and said:
"Jake Paul, I’m going to pick him to win. I’m going to pick him to beat Nate Diaz in MMA... [Paul] just outboxes Diaz by decision. I love Nate Diaz. I don’t want to seem like I’m putting him down. I don’t like saying it... I hope Nate Diaz wins, and I would cheer for him. I will 1,000 percent root for him." [h/t MMAFighting.com]