What is '209' and why is it associated with Nate Diaz?
Nate Diaz and his brother Nick Diaz hail from Stockton, California. The term '209' is often used in association with them as it represents the area code of their hometown.
The Diaz brothers are well known for their grit and toughness inside the octagon. The iconic duo hails from Stockton, one of the most dangerous places to live in California. Hence, they are often referred to as 'Stockton Gangsters'.
Nate Diaz recently submitted Tony Ferguson at UFC 279 in what is believed to be the Stockton native's final fight in the UFC.
However, many MMA fans picked up on another '209' reference, with the referee stopping the bout with two minutes and nine seconds left on the clock in the fourth round.
@AlexBehunin 209 LEFT ON THE CLOCK WHEN IT WAS STOPPED https://t.co/wdVdnyOYhy
Diaz started his fighting career at just 17 years old as a bare-knuckle fighter under MMA rules in 2002. His tough upbringing in Stockton has likely shaped the American's fighting career.
The 37-year-old is unlikely to sign another UFC contract. His bout against Tony Ferguson at UFC 279 was the last fight on his contract. It's currently unknown who Diaz will fight next or whether he'll fight at all, but the '209' fighter has recently announced his own MMA promotion called Real Fight Inc.
Watch Diaz's UFC 279 bout highlights here:
Is Nate Diaz going to fight Jake Paul next?
With Nate Diaz officially out of his UFC contract, the fighter has expressed interest in entering other sports in the future. He has fantastic hands and might even step into the boxing ring to face YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul. The two have been linked more than once in the past, and not for nothing.
Jake Paul is currently set to fight Anderson Silva in a boxing bout and seems to be interested in fighting Diaz under boxing rules.
Paul quickly took to Twitter after Diaz's UFC 279 victory against Tony Ferguson and was seemingly interested in fighting the 37-year-old:
"Nate Diaz says he’s going into the sport of boxing."
Watch the full Jake Paul video here:
Nate Diaz says he’s going into the sport of boxing. https://t.co/wZoKkDbN2s
Diaz has previously shown interest in fighting Jake Paul and didn't shut down the idea while speaking on The MMA Hour. The MMA fighter stated that he was "interested in anything" and was willing to fight 'The Problem Child' if he was the first opponent to be presented to him.
Paul was also impressed with Diaz's performance against Tony Ferguson and once again took to Twitter, claiming that the Stockton fighter would have beaten Khamzat Chimaev had the original pay-per-view card not been reshuffled:
"Nate Diaz is a mut*****kin legend and would have slapped the shit out of Khamzat."
Nate Diaz is a muthufuckin legend and would have slapped the shit out of Khamzat
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