Nate Diaz’s leave from a Russian reality television series led to a swarm of fighters chasing him down on motorcycles.
Former UFC superstar Nate Diaz‘s time competing opposite Jon Jones on a The Ultimate Fighter spinoff in Thailand was short-lived, but extremely eventful for as long as it lasted.
Diaz’s and his team ruffled many feathers upon their arrival to the fighter house ahead of filming for a Russian reality television series. The show featured Jones and Diaz as coaches to train and mentor some of the top fighters in the region, most notably from Russia.
Several in-house brawls broke out between Diaz and Jones’s teams before Diaz left the venue. A longtime teammate of Diaz, Jake Shields, shared viral footage this week of what happened between the two sides that sparked the abrupt show cancelation.
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Aftermath of the Nate Diaz/Jon Jones reality TV cancellation
Diaz has had a checkered past with Dagestani and Chechen fighters during his illustrious combat sports career. He slapped UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov years ago while in the audience for one of Shields’ fights, and his scheduled bout with Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279 was called off due to a backstage brawl and Chimaev’s botched weight cut.
Tensions remain high between Diaz and many top Russian MMA stars, despite Diaz’s post-UFC 279 leave from the promotion. Diaz has since fought in the boxing ring twice, losing in his debut to Jake Paul before defeating former BMF foe Jorge Masvidal last year.
After Diaz, Shields, and the rest of their team left the show’s set, several Russian fighters followed them throughout the area on motorcycles. While it’s uncertain if Diaz is still in Thailand, he and his team were nearly jumped by several fighters who were involved in the in-house chaos on the set.
Shields shared footage of fighters conversing and staking out spots to spy on Diaz and his team following the incident, which you can watch at the timestamped video below. During a recent episode of Shields’ Fight Back podcast, Shields reacted to the aftermath footage.
“People have been sending me videos from Russian Instagram, TV and stuff supposedly of these Russian and Chechen fighters looking for us around Thailand,” Shields said. “The driver drove us to our hotel, they knew exactly where we were, we were in the same area for three, four days walking around going to the exact same places.
“Everyone knew where we were at, we were chillin’ where we were. They were just trying to act tough.”
Despite the show’s abrupt cancellation, Jones remains in Thailand and is allegedly in talks to train with Alex Pereira this week. Pereira and Jones are working towards potential returns to the Octagon after both confused fans with retirement teases earlier this month.
Jon Jones changed course on UFC retirement tease as Tom Aspinall talks stall
After Jones shocked fans earlier this week with a leaked “I’m done” declaration, Jones reversed on that stance and teased a future return to the Octagon. A clash between Jones and interim heavyweight titleholder Tom Aspinall remains on the UFC’s radar for later this year.
Aspinall recently admitted that the long wait for Jones surpassed the stress he felt after suffering a devastating leg injury against Curtis Blaydes in 2022. Less than two years later, Aspinall captured the UFC’s interim heavyweight belt by knocking out Sergei Pavlovich on short-notice at UFC 295.
As for Diaz, he hasn’t fought in any discipline since defeating Masvidal in the boxing ring last year. He hasn’t ruled out a potential return to the Octagon, especially if the Conor McGregor trilogy is on the table.