Nick Diaz: ‘I would have beat GSP at UFC 137’

History Lesson!

When Nick Diaz reentered the UFC’s Octagon he was the reigning Strikeforce world champion. The Stockton, Ca fighter was schedule to fight the champ, GSP, at UFC 137, but a few injured fighters later and the UFC 137 main event was BJ Penn vs. Nick Diaz.

Nick believes that had things went off as planned history, would have changed:

“I had less problems with energy. Like when I fought at 170, especially if I fought three times a year, I can’t say I’m going to be 100-percent at one of those fights. You know, I’m never really 100-percent in any of those fights, because it’s so hard to have perfect preparation for fighting and cutting weight and making 170 pounds, and being in the best shape for training camp and to make that cut. When you have a fight a few months before that, if you fight three times a year, it’s hard to do that three times in a year.

“So I came out more to my potential, like as far as athleticism and strength, in those fights, of course.”

“I think if I had to fight Georges St-Pierre when I made that deal (with the UFC), I think I would’ve won. But I had [one] more [fight] at 170, and then another fight at 170 — same thing, three fights a year real quick, without a big break, so it’s hard to come 100-percent with that much fighting. So I didn’t feel to the fullest of my potential in my last fight.

“In as good of shape as I was, for whatever reason, I came out really flat,” Diaz added. “Not a good warm-up. Like, usually I have really good warm-ups, but you know, I couldn’t. No sweat. I couldn’t get warmed up and it just didn’t feel great, so I think [being at middleweight] might eliminate that problem, for the most part. … Not that I can’t come out to the fullest of my potential, at 100-pcerent, at 170 pounds. I think I could do that. I just think that things didn’t work out as well as they could’ve for me last time around.”