UFC Fight Night 20 Preview: Diaz vs. Maynard

Nate Diaz

Age: 24 (Born Apr 16, 1985)
Nickname: N/A
Height: 6 ft 0 in
Weight: 155 lbs
Reach: 76 in

Primary Fighting Style: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Secondary Fighting Style: Boxing
Fighting Out Of: Stockton, CA
Affiliation: Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy
Weight Class: 155 lbs (Lightweight)
Organizations Fought In: UFC, Strikeforce, Pancrase, WEC

Fight Odds: Diaz +260 (Underdog) – subject to change
Fight Odds Movement: N/A

Overall Record: 11-4
Types of Wins: 8 submissions, 2 KOs, 1 decision
Types of Losses: 3 decisions, 1 submission
Record in Last 5 fights: 3-2
Record in Major Organizations of MMA: 10-3
Longest Winning Streak: 5 wins
Longest Losing Streak: 2 losses
Length of Time Since Last Fight: Approx. four months
Last Fight: def. Melvin Guillard (+205) via Submission (Guillotine Choke) – Round 2, 2:13 – UFC Fight Night 19: Diaz vs. Guillard, September 16, 2009

Notable Wins: Josh Neer, Kurt Pellegrino, Manny Gamburyan
Notable Losses: Joe Stevenson, Clay Guida, Hermes Franca, Koji Oishi

Significant Injuries: N/A
Interesting Trivia: Younger brother of Strikeforce Welterweight contender Nick Diaz. Notorious for submitting Kurt Pellegrino at UFC Fight Night 13 while demonstratively flicking off the camera. Beat Gray Maynard during The Ultimate Fighter 5 reality show via submission.

MMA Accomplishments: The Ultimate Fighter 5 winner, 3-time UFC Fight of the Night participant, 2-time UFC Submission of the Night winner
Non-MMA Accomplishments: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown under Cesar Gracie

Strengths: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, reach / nice jab, ability to recover quickly

Keys to Victory: Be patient and hope that Maynard gets overconfident and creates an opportunity for him. Diaz is an accomplished Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner under Cesar Gracie, so he’ll look to add Maynard to his list of submitted opponents (eight submission victories). He has to figure out a way to take Maynard down without taking too much punishment or tiring himself out in the process, and that won’t be easy against the 3-time All-American collegiate wrestler. Although he’s a tall fighter with a long reach (76 in) and nice jab, Maynard is the stronger, more technical striker and likely has a significant advantage standing, so Diaz will look to get the fight to the ground to pull a submission from the bottom if possible.

* Versus *

Gray Maynard

Age: 30 (Born May 9, 1979)
Nickname: The Bully
Height: 5 ft 8 in
Weight: 155 lbs
Reach: 70 in

Primary Fighting Style: Wrestling
Secondary Fighting Style: Boxing
Fighting Out Of: Las Vegas, NV
Affiliation: Xtreme Couture
Weight Class: 155 lbs (Lightweight)
Organizations Fought In: UFC, WEF, TFC

Fight Odds: -340 (Favorite) – subject to change
Fight Odds Movement: N/A

Overall Record: 8-0 (1 no contest)
Types of Wins: 6 submissions, 2 KOs
Types of Losses: N/A
Record in Last 5 fights: 5-0
Record in Major Organizations of MMA: 6-0
Longest Winning Streak: 8 fights (current)
Longest Losing Streak: N/A
Length of Time Since Last Fight: Approx. 4 months
Last Fight: def. Roger Huerta (+220) via Split Decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27) – UFC Fight Night 19: Diaz vs. Guillard, September 16, 2009

Notable Wins: Roger Huerta, Jim Miller, Rich Clementi, Frankie Edgar
Notable Losses: N/A

Significant Injuries: N/A
Interesting Trivia: Lost to Nate Diaz via guillotine choke during The Ultimate Fighter 5 reality show. Fought to a controversial no decision against Rob Emerson at The Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale – after Maynard slammed Emerson to the mat, Emerson immediately tapped due to an apparent injury to his ribs while Maynard was temporarily knocked out. The fight was eventually ruled a no decision.

MMA Accomplishments: Undefeated as a professional fighter (8-0)
Non-MMA Accomplishments: 3-time All American wrestler at Michigan State University, high school national champion wrestler

Strengths: Wrestling, significantly improved boxing, wrestler’s cardio, strength

Keys to Victory: Turn the fight into a boxing bout. Although Maynard is an accomplished wrestler and quite comfortable on the ground, he likely won’t want to give his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace opponent any opportunities to find a submission there. Maynard should look to stuff Diaz’s takedown attempts and turn the fight into a boxing match. Should Diaz pull the takedown, Maynard is obviously no slouch on the ground, but will want to get back to his feet as quickly as possible to contest the fight with his fists. Maynard should enjoy a significant advantage trading standing strikes, and outside of a few jabs, Diaz will pose little threat via his boxing and will only likely use that to set up his takedown attempts.

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