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Jake Paul and Nate Diaz sat down for their first press conference for their upcoming August PPV boxing match. The social media star and former Disney kid will be looking to rebound from the first loss of his professional career, following a split decision defeat to Tommy Fury back in February.
To accomplish that task, Paul has gone back to familiar grounds, taking on another former UFC attraction in the twilight of his career. This time around it’s the younger half of Stockton’s best known pugilistic export, the Diaz bros. Nate Diaz is fresh out from under the control of the UFC, fighting as a free agent for the first time since 2006. It seems, however, that being left to his own devices has made him a lightning rod for trouble.
Nate Diaz charged with battery
Recently Diaz was in New Orleans in support of longtime training partner Chris Avila, at the MF & DAZN X Series 6 boxing event at the XULA Convocation Center. A card filled with reality stars and social media influencers (and light on trained boxers), the night was a hotbed for controversy.
At one point during Avila’s fight, Diaz took exception to something said by DQ’d undercard fighter Chase DeMoor, chucking a water bottle at the man as he stood ringside. Later on that evening, he clashed with DeMoor entourage member—and Logan Paul lookalike—Rodney Peterson in the midst of a massive, bar-clearing street fight. Diaz choked Peterson unconscious in a viral video incident, one that quickly led to a warrant for his arrest.
During the first media presser for their PPV bout, Jake Paul took the chance to ask Diaz about his clash with the man who wasn’t Logan Paul.
“Did you think it was Logan Paul when they were all on the street there?” Jake questioned, during a lull in the press conference. “Just definitely, in a flash, you thought he was Logan.”
“You gonna act like that wasn’t Logan?” Diaz replied. “Why’d he run in my grill?”
“You thought he was Logan?” Paul asked again.
“It is Logan. What are you talking about,” Diaz joked. “You guys saw what happened to Logan! Where is Logan? Is he here? Shout out to Logan! He’ll be alright.
“Hey, you don’t just hit people, out there,” Diaz continued. “That’s f-cking dangerous, you know what I’m saying? Give ’em a little nap.”
“I think you kneed him,” Paul replied
“That’s nice too. Slowed it down a little bit.”
Diaz turned himself over to authorities in Louisiana shortly after the felony warrant was issued, and was released soon afterward on a $10,000 bond. Following the release of footage from the incident, Diaz’s agent put out a statement to the media claiming that the fighter acted in self defense.
“Nate’s attorney looks forward to presenting all of the facts about this incident to the District Attorney which clearly demonstrate that a trained fighter named Rodney Petersen aggressively pursued Nate with the intention of engaging him and once doing so, Nate acted entirely in self-defense. No further comment will be made at this time.”
If team Diaz has been tight lipped about making more public statements, however, it certainly doesn’t seem like Nate got that message.
Diaz vs. Paul fight card
Nate Diaz vs. Jake Paul is set to take place at the American Airlines center in Dallas, TX. As of yet, only one other fight has been announced for the card, a women’s featherweight bout between undisputed champion Amanda Serrano and title challenger Heather Hardy. Serrano is a key fighter for Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions boxing outfit, and has appeared in the co-main spot for both of Paul’s bouts against Tyron Woodley.
Serrano and Hardy are, in fact, familiar foes, having faced off back in 2019. There Serrano defeated Hardy via unanimous decision to claim the WBO featherweight title. Hardy has only competed once since that loss, a 2021 defeat to Jessica Camara.
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