Veteran UFC referee shares two-word reaction to Jake Shields' latest update about Nick Diaz
Nick Diaz's life may very well have taken a positive turn, at least according to close friend and former Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu teammate Jake Shields. The news drew the attention of longtime MMA referee Marc Goddard on Instagram, where a clip of Shields commenting on the Stockton star's life has been making the rounds.
While Shields' assessment of his ex-teammate's current situation is optimistic, he opted against providing any intimate details about his struggles. He said:
"He's doing a lot better. I'm not gonna get into anything personal with him, but he had some stuff that's been going on for a little while and it's finally heading in the right direction. So, I'm hopeful for Nick, cause he's a brother to me, one of my best friends. But life's tough sometimes, ups and downs, things can happen and Nick was dealing with something, and I think it's headed in the right direction."
Check out Jake Shields' positive news about Nick Diaz:
Shields, as he himself described, is one of Nick's closest friends, and was once part of the Skrap Pack, a group of Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu fighters consisting of both Shields and Nick along with other mixed martial artists, like Nick's younger brother, Nate Diaz, Gilbert Melendez, Daniel Roberts and David Terrell.
Shields' post prompted Goddard to react in the comments section. The veteran MMA referee wrote:
"Great news!"
Nick Diaz's UFC return was canceled twice
Nick Diaz's last true competitive UFC fight was at UFC 183, where he faced the legendary Anderson Silva at middleweight. The Brazilian won via unanimous decision before a positive PED test led to the result being overturned. Six years later, the Stockton star lost to Robbie Lawler via first-round TKO.
Check out the infamous video of Nick Diaz before UFC 310:
Since then, he has been linked to a return against Vicente Luque. Unfortunately, the first date, which was at UFC on ABC 7, was postponed due to travel issues. The second date, at UFC 310, never took place either as Diaz withdrew from the event for undisclosed reasons.