Nate Diaz admits he did not win second fight with Conor McGregor, but didn’t lose it either

Speaking on Monday’s episode of Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, Nate Diaz discussed many interesting topics, including his loss to Conor McGregor.

Diaz first beat McGregor at UFC 196 in the second round with a rear-naked choke. The pair returned to face each other at UFC 202 later the same year. The fight went five rounds and McGregor won from a majority decision. Yet for many, (including Nate Diaz,) it was not a clear win for the Irish fighter.

“The second fight I’m going to say ok, I didn’t win that fight. But more so than I didn’t win that fight, I definitely didn’t lose that fight.”

Previously, Nate Diaz believed he won the fight. He has since toned down his perspective on the bout but is still adamant that he did not lose.

Some fighters have agreed with Diaz and shared their own thoughts on the fight. Matt Serra believed the American fighter should have won:

“He was stalking McGregor the whole time; backing him up.” Serra said.

Other fighters such as Anthony Pettis and Stephen Thompson also felt McGregor was avoiding Diaz during the fight. According to Fight Metric, Nate Diaz landed 252 of 435 total strikes thrown, meanwhile McGregor landed 197 of 322.

Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz share one of the greatest UFC rivalries of all time. Whilst many may dispute the winner of UFC 202, one thing that is not up for dispute: McGregor and Diaz’s bouts are two of the most entertaining in UFC history.

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 6/4/2019.