Nick Diaz doesn’t like politics and he doesn’t like losing.

He especially doesn’t like losing over what he thinks is politics.

In the main event of UFC 143 on Saturday night in Las Vegas, Diaz lost a unanimous decision to Carlos Condit for the UFC Interim Welterweight Championship.

It was a close bout from start to finish with Diaz getting off to a fast start and then Condit finding his groove in the later rounds. Each round was debatable, but Condit inflicted more damaged and controlled the pace for the final three rounds. The judges scored the bout 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47 for Condit.

Following the fight, Diaz said he was quitting MMA because he felt he won the fight and Condit did nothing but run from him. Instead, how I saw it was Condit used footwork to stay out of the pocket and then hit Diaz with leg kicks and hooks to win rounds.

Now, with Diaz out of the picture, Condit will face Georges St. Pierre to unify the UFC titles once GSP returns from a torn ACL.

In the co-main event, Fabricio Werdum made a big statement with his dominant decision win over Roy Nelson in the heavyweight division. Known for being a submission specialist, Werdum used his striking to get the victory on Saturday night. Werdum locked Nelson up in a thai clinch in the first round and then worked some powerful knees to Nelson’s face and body that took “Big Country” out of the match.

Over the final two rounds, Werdum did enough to win the round against a tired Nelson. The win was an impressive one for Werdum, who now legitimately thrusts himself into the top 5 of the division alongside Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, Cain Velasquez, and Frank Mir

For complete results from UFC 143, check out the jump.

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Nick Diaz proved that he is no minor league champ on Saturday in the main event of UFC 137.

The last Strikeforce Welterweight champion overcame a slow start to dominant the final two rounds against UFC legend, B.J. Penn, as Diaz picked up a unanimous decision win for perhaps the biggest win in his career.

Diaz survived the opening round as Penn came out with a fast start, using dirty boxing and grappling to control the round. Penn had Diaz’ back at one point, but Diaz was able to get out of the dominant position and get into the later rounds, where he started to work his boxing.

Diaz used relentless jabs and combinations to pick apart the tiring Penn, who ended up with a busted nose and bruised face before the final bell sounded. The decision wasn’t really in doubt, as Diaz had clearly closed out the final two rounds.

Following the win, Diaz called out UFC welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre, whom Diaz was originally scheduled to face before being pulled from the title bout by the UFC as a disciplinary action for missing pre-event press conferences.

Still, Diaz is likely in line for a title shot against GSP or Carlos Condit, who will be fighting for the title in early 2012.

Penn announced his retirement from the sport following the loss, his third in his last five fights. Penn will go down as one of the all-time greats as he held titles in two different weight classes and was arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world during his prime.

For full UFC 137 results, check out the jump.

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The UFC has two legendary welterweights facing off in the main event of UFC 137 on Saturday night as B.J. Penn takes on Nick Diaz.

Penn is a former UFC welterweight and lightweight champion while Nick Diaz was the Strikeforce welterweight champion prior to leaving the organization for greener pastures.

Penn (16-7-2) comes into this three-round contest as the favorite over Diaz (26-7-1), as Penn has odds of -125 to top Diaz, who has a money line of -105. Both fighters have similar styles as each relies on boxing and jiu-jitsu to win fights. Penn may have the edge in regards to wrestling, but Diaz will have a big size edge in terms of mass and reach. Both fighters will be sure to leave everything in the octagon, which makes this fight very interesting.

The co-main event also has a very competitive contest as heavyweights Cheick Kongo (26-6-2) and Matt Mitrione (5-0) face off with the winner emerging as a top-10 contender in the division.

Mitrione is the slight favorite, with a money line of -140 while Kongo has odds of +110 to win. Both fighters are primarily strikers, but Mitrione packs the harder punch and is more mobile while Kongo has a slightly better ground game. Mitrione will look to keep the fight standing and stick-and-move while Kongo will look to utilize leg kicks and takedowns to finish the fight with ground-and-pound.

For complete UFC 137 betting odds, check out the jump.

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HeavyMMA.com’s Specer Kyte points out the 10 things he learned from Saturday’s historic Stirkeforce: Diaz vs. Daley card in San Diego.

DIAZ VS. DALEY WAS BETTER THAN ADVERTISED
I had concerns about the main event falling short of expectations. Boy, was I wrong.

For three ticks shy of five minutes, these two went toe-to-toe, trading punishing blows and trying to put the other one away. Both men got rocked at different points in the frenetic first round, and even though they only used 1/5 of the allotted time, the fans still got what they came for and then some.

Whatever your feelings on the organization, you have to give Strikeforce their due: more often than naught, we’re treated to wildly exciting fights, and Saturday’s main event was no different.

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According to HeavyMMA.com, Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz wants to take on Georges St. Pierre or Anderson Silva.

Nick Diaz is scheduled to defend his Strikeforce welterweight crown against Evangelista Santos Jan. 29 in San Jose, Calif., but that didn’t stop him from calling out UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre on a media conference call Thursday promoting “Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg.”

“I want to fight Georges St. Pierre,” said Diaz.
Diaz’ Cesar Gracie teammate Jake Shields takes on St. Pierre at UFC 129 on April 30 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

“I think my partner (Jake Shields) is going to take him out to be honest, coming up,” added the Strikeforce champion.

“I got here and started fighting before most of them, including Georges St. Pierre, in the UFC. I was really mad at first that they were getting fights and recognition when I was here first,” said Diaz when asked how he stacks up against other top ranked welterweights.

Read the full article.