Jacob “Stitch” Duran says he stopped Nate Diaz vs. Mike Perry at MVP MMA 1 because Diaz was badly cut, dealing with a broken finger, bleeding from the nose, and having trouble seeing after two rounds with Perry.
Perry defeated Diaz by TKO after the second round at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. The stoppage came on a Netflix card that also featured Ronda Rousey’s quick win over Gina Carano, but this co-main event became one of the night’s biggest talking points because Diaz did not answer the bell for Round 3.
Duran was in Diaz’s corner to handle cuts and protect his fighter. Once Diaz’s bleeding kept getting worse and Perry continued to win the physical exchanges, Duran said the decision became clear.
Speaking on MMA Junkie Radio, Duran explained the damage Diaz had taken.
“He ended up with 15 staples, 20 stitches all together. He was beat up. He was too strong for him. I always look at it as a judge, and at that point, he was getting his ass whooped. Mike was just too strong, too aggressive and he was working him. Then, Nate broke his finger right about here. He said, ‘I couldn’t do nothing.’ The cuts were so big here, it kept pulsating. It kept going and then his nose kept bleeding. It was the sign of maybe a broken nose. I told Nate, ‘I’m going to have the doctor stop the fight, man.’ I said, ‘It’s too much blood and you keep bleeding.’ The referee said, ‘Come on, let’s go.’ I said, ‘No, no, no. He’s not going out.’”
Watch Duran explain the stoppage below:
Cutman Jacob "Stitch" Duran explains why he stopped Nate Diaz's fight vs. Mike Perry on the stool.
""Nate thanked me. … I said, 'Of course.' I was there to take care of him. That was a proper move."
(via @MMAJunkieGeorge, @TheGoze) pic.twitter.com/iePALtoGRK
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) May 20, 2026
Duran Says Diaz Could Not See Clearly Before The Stoppage
Diaz has spent his career proving he can take punishment. He won The Ultimate Fighter 5, fought in the UFC for more than 15 years, challenged for the UFC lightweight title in 2012, and became one of MMA’s most recognizable pressure fighters. This was not a fighter looking for a way out.
Duran said Diaz thanked him afterward, which matters because Diaz was the one taking the damage and trusting the corner call. The key detail was not just the blood. Duran said Diaz told him he could not see.
“Nate thanked me. He said, ‘Thanks.’ I said, ‘Of course.’ I was there to take care of him. That was a proper move. The thing about it is he said he couldn’t see. That’s always No. 1. It wasn’t a hard decision to make. … He had blood everywhere. So it wasn’t that hard of a decision to make. My job is to protect the fighter. That’s exactly what I did with Nate. At the end, when we were saying goodbye, he gives me a hug, ‘I love you.’ His dad was there. He thanked me. So of course I did the right thing. No question about it.”
The stoppage was easier to understand once Duran listed everything at once. Diaz needed 15 staples and 20 total stitches, had a cut that kept bleeding, had nose damage Duran believed could have signaled a broken nose, broke a finger, and said he could not see. Sending him into Round 3 with Perry still fresh and pressing forward would have been a dangerous call.
Perry also deserves credit for creating the damage. The former UFC fighter rebuilt his name in bare-knuckle boxing and became BKFC’s “King of Violence” champion. Against Diaz, he brought that pressure back to MMA and made the fight ugly with power shots, clinch work, and forward pressure.
Duran said other combat sports figures supported the decision, including former boxing champion Marco Antonio Barrera.
“You know what’s cool? I got a message from Marco Antonio Barrera from Guadalajara. He thanked me. He said great job. I got a lot of compliments from guys within the industry. They understand. My only job is to give that guy one more round and if he can’t go one more round, to take care of him. So I’m glad I was there for Nate.”
Diaz’s toughness is not in question, and the stoppage does not erase what made him a fan favorite. It does make the aftermath much clearer. Perry did enough damage to force a serious medical decision, Diaz was too compromised to continue, and Duran chose fighter safety over one more bloody round.
The result keeps Perry in a strong position if MVP pushes a rematch, especially after Dustin Poirier criticized Diaz’s performance against Perry. Duran’s account gives the fight a cleaner ending than the boos suggested. Diaz was hurt, he thanked the man who stopped it, and the cutman did exactly what he was there to do.
