After Years Of Dismissiveness Of Nate Diaz Being Real UFC Draw, Dana White Now Admits He” Is A Needle Mover”
Dating way back to 2014 during a post-fight presser in Dublin Ireland, Dana White voiced his opinions on Nate Diaz’s superstardom.
At the Dublin presser, White said that he didn’t believe Diaz “moved the needle.”
“I love Nate Diaz. Nate (Diaz) is actually one of my favorite kids. I always got along with Nate, Nate was always great. Lowest rated FOX show ever. Lowest rated FOX show ever. His numbers, he doesn’t pull the numbers in. Nick (Diaz) is a needle mover. Nick moves the needle. [Nate] doesn’t pull good numbers.”
Fast forward today and like many other moments in UFC history, Dana has completely changed his tune.
When asked if Diaz had a mainstream appeal at the UFC 241 post-fight conference, White said, “Yeah…it’s pretty tough to deny.” and “he’s a needle mover now.”
Dana then went on to explain Nate Diaz’s superstardom in further detail.
“You have to talk about the layoff,” Dana said. “You have to talk about that this kid hasn’t fought in three years. He looked a little rough in the first round, looked like he gassed out at the end of the first round, too. And then completely changed his game plan and started to fight his fight.
“Then once he got there, he basically did what he wanted against one of the top ten guys in the world after a three-year layoff. Pretty damn impressive.”
Now that Dana finally believes in the power of Diaz and his superstardom, the MMA community should expect his next appearance in the octagon to be monumental.
Diaz called out Jorge Masvidal after his victory over Anthony Pettis at UFC 241. With the newfound backing of the Diaz brand from Dana, the likelihood of the fight happening is probable. If not, expect to see Diaz in an even larger promotional role. Maybe even against Conor McGregor.
