Nate Diaz isn't a part of the 'Conor McGregor Show.'
When UFC Featherweight Champion Conor McGregor showed up 30 minutes late for a scheduled UFC 202 press conference on Wednesday, his opponent Nate Diaz saw that as a sign to leave. When Diaz did, bottles were thrown and mayhem ensued. When speaking to UFC Tonight, Diaz explained his decision to walk out.
"Like I said, that guy walks in like he was the show," Diaz said. "But I thought the show was over, so I left the show."
Despite the buzz created, the situation wasn't one the UFC ideally wanted. As is tradition, Diaz didn't care, and thinks the UFC doesn't want him to win anyway.
"I'm too real for this whole game, and they can't have a guy like me winning because look at what's happening. I get paid finally, I've been stuck in contracts for years, and then they sell the UFC. It's changing baby, and it's because of what's going on here. And if people don't recognize that they're tripping. And the same thing, that's why they threw me right back in there, they want to weed me out and get me out of here before it gets too big. But it's already an unstoppable force that's going at a high pace, so the game is in trouble with someone like me winning. So that's why. They know me and they know that, they hope I don't win. It's all good either way though because I cannot be killed and regardless, win or lose, which I plan on winning, my voice is still going to be heard. My mic got too big to not be heard," said Diaz.
Diaz's coach, Richard Perez, advocated Diaz's decision to leave, but it wasn't mapped out like many have speculated.
"It as a spontaneous thing," Perez told Submission Radio Wednesday. "It wasn’t planned at all. McGregor, I guess he thinks he’s the king and can come in when he wants. Nathan was sitting just there talking, he didn’t care. And then when he came in, then he just said, you know what, it’s my turn to leave."
Diaz will face Conor McGregor in the main event of UFC 202 Saturday night on PPV. Fightful.com will have full coverage of the event, including a post-show live podcast.
