thaFormula.com - How did you get started in MMA Nate?

Nate Diaz - The thing with that was that I was helping Nick train with a bunch of fights and when he got in the UFC I started really helping him and doing a lot of rounds with him sparring, and I became one of his main sparring partners so right then was when I knew for sure that I wanted to fight and I started fighting right after that. Because getting him ready for a fight pretty much got me ready to fight. So I just started with him. He would have me go to the gym with him everyday. After I got out of school he would be like "let's go to the gym" and I would roll with him. So I just started doing Jiu Jitsu and then before I knew it I was tapping people out and stuff and like I said when I got into the UFC is when I started really helping him train and I was one of his main sparring partners and just all around training partner. As soon as he fought, I got a fight and I started fighting right there.

thaFormula.com - What did you think about it when you first started training, did you automatically like it?

Nate Diaz - Yeah, I did. I liked the idea of it and so as soon as I started to learn how to really fight, I was sure that I was down for it and into it.

thaFormula.com - Now you grew up in Stockton, people talk about Stockton and how bad it can be. I have never been there, but what separates it from other places in that area?

Nate Diaz - People say it's crazy around here, but I think it's like any other city to be honest with you. People say it's ghetto and shit but I've been to places that are worse. It's a pretty normal city. It's not too bad and it's not great or anything. It's just like every other city.

thaFormula.com - So when your brother was already fighting, were you just watching your brother during that time?

Nate Diaz - Well nah, I was doing Jiu Jitsu tournaments and then I did a couple of kick boxing smokers and boxing smokers. I would always win at those and I actually trained with a lot of people that were fighters then and they beat a lot of people and stuff. I fucked them up so you know right there it kind of shows you where your at. So it showed me that I might as well get in there too.

thaFormula.com - How do you and your brother usually train?

Nate Diaz - Well we do a lot of boxing. We box with professional boxers and we wrestle and do Jiu Jitsu and MMA. We do a lot of full contact stuff. We go hard when we are doing Jiu Jitsu, when we box we got head gear so we are going basically as hard as we can and you know just trying not to bust up your partner. We know what were doing with each other. We go hard so that we're in shape and you know practice makes perfect. If you wanna fight you've got to train to fight.

thaFormula.com - How do you feel about the striking in MMA and how did you see it back when you started compared to now?

Nate Diaz - You know when I was less experienced you know there was people who I thought were good boxers, but then I have come to realize after training, sparring and all the stuff I have done that a lot of people are just totally lame at boxing. There are not many technical boxers in MMA. People in MMA that are considered good strikers, they spar with other MMA guys and they don't do it right. Like I said me and Nick we put on headgear and 16 oz. gloves and we go hard. To get good at boxing you have to box and to do that, you have to do it the right way and I feel that we do it right compared to how other people do it in MMA. They don't really spar right. So I think that a lot of people think that some guys out there are good strikers when really they are not. They are just hard hitters and you've got to get your technical aspect down to.

thaFormula.com - Now you fought your first Pro fight in 2004 against Alex Garcia. Were you more of a Jiu Jitsu guy back then or a striker since day one?

Nate Diaz - I boxed back then too. I was probably more of a Jiu Jitsu guy but I wasn't planning on going in there and doing a bunch of Jiu Jitsu moves. I was going in there to fight him and box. I probably thought I was just as good at boxing but I wasn't as technical as now. I was just kind of getting taken down in that fight because he was a wrestler. He kept getting the takedowns on me, but I didn't get hit one time in the fight even though it went 3 rounds. It was a good experience for me because after that I kind of got better at my tie up and my takedown defense and my takedowns.

thaFormula.com - When you were training for your first fight and you actually got in the ring, how effective was all the training and was or is there a time during the fight where you just blank out or maybe forget certain things?

Nate Diaz - No it doesn't. All I do is train and spar so much really that when I'm in there, I try to do everything right. Even if I'm like out of it. I train so much that I will do what I usually do in the fight.

thaFormula.com - What was the feeling like for you to get that first win out of the way?

Nate Diaz - It felt good. I just wanted to get that first one out of the way, I remember that. I just wanted a for sure win for my first fight. I didn't want to go out there 0-1 before I was 1-0. So it felt real good to get a win under my belt for my first fight.

thaFormula.com - So after that first fight Nate, you went almost a whole year before your next fight, why was that?

Nate Diaz - Well I was just training. I wasn't big into fighting. I was just doing it at first. I wasn't like "ohh I want to start a crazy career." I was mainly just helping Nick. That was the main thing. I was helping Nick and then I fought my second time. Actually when I lost my second fight is when I wanted to fight more. .

thaFormula.com - Now in that second fight you fought Koji Oishi and lost a 3 round decision. How did that fight go down for you?

Nate Diaz - Well you know it went to a decision. It was my second fight and it was in Japan and it was the main event on the card. The guy over there was ranked number 1 or 2 in the welterweight division and I went up a weight class. So when I went over there it was kind of crazy that I was the main event. But it was no big thing, I just went in there and did my thing. So I went in there and went as hard as I could. It was stand up the whole time. I didn't really go for any takedowns. We boxed and he actually caught me with a good punch in the first round that swelled up my eye and dropped me to. So I got back to my feet and we banged it out and I actually landed a whole lot more punches then he did on me. It's just that throughout the fight he would stand there and throw his one punch and hit me in the same eye so my eye swelled up. I lost the decision because I probably looked worse in the end and I got dropped in the first round, but like I said I felt like I landed a lot more punches. But then I lost a decision and I was like "whatever." It's kind of crazy because I was in Japan and it was my first time ever in Japan and I was only 19 I think. So I was just like "whatever." I lost the decision and I really didn't get beat up too bad. I had a fun time even being out there even though I lost, but then after that I wanted to win for sure so I got back into training with my brother. It took a while for me to fight again but once I started, I was on a roll. I fought 5 times I think the next year.

thaformula.com - So you came back to fight Tony Juares after your second loss and pulled out the TKO, did the whole going to Japan and fighting experience help you out a lot for this fight?

Nate Diaz - Not really. It was just like another fight. It was kind of crazy over there though because there was like 18,000 people at that fight. But I had stepped up my training.

thaformula.com - So your next fight came against Gil Rael and you scored another TKO in the first round, how did it feel to have back-to-back 1st round TKO's?

Nate Diaz - That felt good and like I said I felt like I was starting to get on a role and it I just started feeling more comfortable in the cage every time.

thaformula.com - So up next you fought Joe Hurley which was a guy your brother had also fought and was considered a very tough fighter. How were you feeling going up against Hurley?

Nate Diaz - Well I knew that he had more experience because he had been around for a while. So I was kind of like I wouldn't say nervous, I was just kind of like "alright I've got to be more careful with this guy" you know and then once I fought him and got through him, then I started feeling more confident. I was like "alright, now I want t fight somebody with a big name and start building my name up more" because I had just beat Joe Hurley. Back in the day Hurley used to knock a bunch of people out. He did some good stuff back in the day when me and Nick would go to fights before we fought and we would see him out there and people would be chanting "Hurley, Hurley." So he did things back in the day, he's old school you know?

thaformula.com - So at this point in time you started to build your name up a little and people started to notice that there was another Diaz with skills also. You came back and racked up your 4th win in a row by defeating Dennis Davis via submission in the first round, was that a pretty easy fight for you?

Nate Diaz - Yeah that one was kind of quick and it was cool to win like that because it was in my hometown. So yeah that one was good for me.

thaformula.com - So as your striking improved throughout these fights, did you begin to notice the difference boxing skills really make when stepping into the ring?

Nate Diaz - Yeah totally. Not just so much to hit the people man, but to not get hit to you know what I'm saying? I haven't got hit in any fights since Koji Oishi, except for the one fight on the show. I got caught with that elbow, but I didn't feel it. It just cut me open you know.

thaformula.com - Yeah you know every time I watch you and your brother fight it always seems like you guys do a really good job of avoiding that big punch…

Nate Diaz - Yeah that's the thing man, people think they are trying to box but there is so much to it, like if you got that feeling, you know where punches are coming from and head movement and all that stuff. I'm boxing to not get hit at the same time as I'm boxing to hit someone.

thaformula.com - Now after you racked up your 4th straight win you fought you first real big name in Hermes Franca, break down how that fight came about and what happened in that fight?

Nate Diaz - Yeah like you said everybody knows Hermes. When I fought him I was like "whatever" because I don't really have much to lose. I was like "he's the man right now so I'm gonna go in and attempt to whoop his ass." I trained with Jiu Jitsu guys that are as good as him, but I just happened to get caught up in that one. But I feel like I was winning the fight, but you know you got to be careful. You can't just go and get caught up in some shit like I did. But I think that was like a one-time thing and I don't think that would happen again. I hope he does well and wins the title or whatever. But that fight did help me feel more confident about what level I'm at because I've seen him fight the guys in the UFC now and he has beaten people in there and I was just boxing the shit out of his ass. All the other guys in the UFC going up against him aren't doing shit to him, they're getting knocked out by him.

thaFormula.com - With that said, were you surprised at how much better your striking was than his and how easily you were connecting on Hermes?

Nate Diaz - No, I knew that I definitely had better stand up because I watched his fights and his boxing in his fights. That's how it is usually when I'm sparring with people too. I go in there and they are supposed to be somebody's or whatever and then the same thing happens. You can't just go in there do good and get caught up. I get mad at people I train with for doing that. For me I just so happened to get caught up with Hermes. That's always shitty. You know you go in there and you're whoopin' someone's ass and then you get caught, that's not cool.

thaFormula.com - So in the first Round of that fight with Hermes you pretty much dominated the round, but then he came out strong in the second round. Did that quick flurry that he came out with in the second round catch you off guard?

Nate Diaz - No, I knew he was coming back harder because he had to win the rounds back. So I weathered it and I felt like I had to get back on my feet. I actually felt like I had to get a takedown and get back on top to get the points back because you know how they score so much for being on top. I thought I was on the bottom for longer then I was. After I watched the fight I realized I wasn't on the bottom for that long. So I tried to get on top and hold him down for a minute when I should have just got back to my feet.

thaFormula.com - Was getting caught in an arm bar by Hermes the last thing you thought about?

Nate Diaz - Well it crossed my mind. I knew he was a good Jiu Jitsu guy but I don't usually get caught like that in practice. I train with black belts and all kinds of good guys and I just kind of had shitty posture. That day I did shitty. I should have worked on my posture more. I just got caught man, I fucked up.

thaFormula.com - So with you doing so good against Hermes, how hard was it to deal with the loss?

Nate Diaz - I was pretty pissed but what can you do? I fucked up. But whatever, I got back home and went right back into training. Then I found out I was going on the Ultimate Fighter show.

thaFormula.com - After the fight though, did you get a lot more respect and good words from people on your fight with Hermes?

Nate Diaz - Yeah people always tell me stuff but it makes it kind of worse on me actually. People will come at me like "you were whoopin his ass" and it just makes me think about how I fucked up.

thaFormula.com - So how did the whole Ultimate Fighter show come about for you Nate?

Nate Diaz - They were already talking about it with my manager and my brother. They were trying to make my brother go to the one before that, but they were already talking about how they were trying to get me on there also. But I didn't especially wanna go myself.

thaFormula.com - Now I know your brother wasn't interested in going and now I hear you telling me you weren't either, why is that?

Nate Diaz - I just didn't feel like I'm good with cameras and interviews and stuff. So I wasn't too into it you know. I kind of just watched the other guys and I'm like "man these guys look like shit." So I'm like "fuck I don't want to be on that." Then Ceasar and Nick would talk about it like "c'mon," and I would tell them "nah, hell no I ain't going." But then they talked me into it and felt that it would be better for my career. So I ended up just getting talked into it. Like I wasn't totally against it, but I wasn't too happy about going. It was the same thing with my brother. He wasn't trying to go in there. He already had a big name so he didn't wanna go and Matt Serra was there to and he's from like our team so he didn't wanna go there because of Matt.

thaFormula.com - So when you got there was it better or worse then you expected?

Nate Diaz - It was shitty man. It sucked there. It was terrible. There was no TV, no radio, no books, iPods, and no calls in or out. You couldn't leave the house. It was like jail man. I couldn't handle it. It fucking sucked.

thaFormula.com - How was the training on the show and was it all they make it out to be?

Nate Diaz - Yeah the training was cool. They had some cool drills and stuff but I feel like I get better training at home though. People make it out to be like it's the best thing you will ever get in life and you will come back a better fighter, but like I get better training at home. I feel like I was good from the training I was doing here to go to the show and once I got there I felt like my boxing slowly was getting shittier because I wasn't doing as much sparring and my wrestling was shittier because we didn't do any wrestling. They had other stuff they were subbing it with though. Like weight lifting and other different kind of stuff.

thaFormula.com - Do you wish that the whole hand-raising incident never happened and did you care what team you ended up on?

Nate Diaz - Yeah I do wish that never happened but it was like whatever, what happened, happened. The thing was I didn't want to miss any opportunities to be on any of the guys teams. If Jens would have told us to raise our hand, I would have done the same thing. It's kind of a fucked up situation that they put everybody in. But I didn't care what team I was on. Either team would have been fine with me.

thaformula.com - When you got to the show and you meet everybody, who at the time did you see as the biggest threat to you?

Nate Diaz - Probably that Gray Maynard guy. Cory was one of them after I got there. I didn't think he was one when I got there but when I trained with him, he was harder dealing with then a lot of the others.

thaformula.com - With your first fight with Emerson, once again people were surprised with your showing. Why do you think that so many people are surprised at how good you and your brother always do in fights?

Nate Diaz - I don't know. I think that we are the ones pushing the pace of the fight and we are the ones trying to beat them more then the other guy. I think that people should look at that more then look at who is making the most noise and making sounds while they are fighting, if that makes any sense to you.

thaformula.com - Now after your great showing against Hermes, it seemed like you're striking wasn't as good against Emerson as it was against Hermes. Do you think that it had to do with what you were talking about training wise?

Nate Diaz - Yeah, exactly. That's what I mean man and as the show goes on and the fights happen, my fights get worse as they go. My first was better then my second, my second was probably better then my third. I get a lot more sparring here. I got a lot more people in my ear telling me what I got to do. I got black belt in Jiu Jitsu coaches, Sambo coaches and wrestling coaches and my brother. Over here we spar with each other and then we spar with pro boxers and over there all I had to spar with was MMA guys who weren't experienced in boxing so it made my hands kind of get shitty and we didn't do as much. So as far as the training goes, it wasn't as great as they make it out to be.

thaformula.com - So even thought you won your fight with Emerson, were you a little disappointed with how it went?

Nate Diaz - Some things I felt I could have done better, but I'm happy with how it turned out. I think if I fought him again, I would beat him easier and probably make it look better too.

thaformula.com - As far as your fight with Corey Hill, were you surprised that they put you up against each other so early on and did you know that was coming?

Nate Diaz - Yeah I kind of did know. I stopped talking to him about a week before because I was like "man they are gonna match me up with Corey," because after I trained with him he was one of the bigger threats. So I was like "the only problem here for me will probably be Cory." People get more comfortable with you man if you hang out and shit with them before you fight them. Then they go in there like "yeah we're friends, we'll go have a friendly fight" and they go hard you know? So I just stopped talking to him. I was like "fuck him, If I got to fight him I ain't hanging out with him because he ain't my boy" you know?

thaformula.com - But what made you think that they would put you guys up against each other so early on?

Nate Diaz - Because he was more of a threat and that's why I stopped talking to him. The other guys weren't much of a threat so I was like "I don't give a shit about them" and I didn't think no one in the house wanted to fight me and I didn't think anyone in the house wanted to fight him either and they called us all in to ask us who we wanted to fight and I knew that nobody would say me or him if they were smart.

thaformula.com - So when the fight went down, did it go down how you pictured it happening in the ring with Corey?

Nate Diaz - I pictured some of it happening that way except for he threw me around a little bit. It wasn't no thing, I just had to feel him out for a second. I was just slowly trying to work my way in.

thaformula.com - Now before the fight you went to train with BJ Penn and his team. How was that and how good was Penn on the ground seeing that you got a chance to roll with him?

Nate Diaz - He's pretty good man. He is a technical guy. He is really good at Jiu Jitsu and kind of reminds me of my brother.

thaformula.com - Did you guys get to go full blast for a minute during the training? 

Nate Diaz - Yeah we did. He had me train with his guys for about 20 minutes and then he was like "come here man you wanna roll with me?" So I rolled with him. It was just like I said though, it was like rolling with my brother.

thaformula.com - Do you feel the training with Penn and his team helped you at all with your fight with Corey?

Nate Diaz - No, I just went there for a little bit because I had a little bit of extra weight to lose so I went there to do a extra training session and just stay away from Corey a little bit you know because everything I would do in practice he would do.

thaformula.com - Were you surprised at all at how much Corey had improved since his first fight?

Nate Diaz - Yeah see everybody thinks he's like good now. Well the thing is like I said he was more comfortable with me because he hung out with me for a minute. He got all comfortable with me and sparred and trained with me so he came out harder. He got in this little comfort zone with me. That's why I don't like to be around people I fight because they get like that. So I was like "fuck him" as soon as I realized that I had to fight him.

thaformula.com - So even thought you won that fight also, how did you feel about that fight?

Nate Diaz - Yeah I think I had a shitty performance in that fight for sure. I knew he was strong and I knew he was unorthodox. He was a collegiate wrestler so he was just like I expected. I was gonna make him shoot on me and I was thinking I was gonna get him in the guillotine just like it ended up happening. So it worked out exactly kind of how I pictured it happening. But it was a little less technical then what I would have liked it to have been. I wish I would have thrown some better punches and did some better stuff. But like I said, training wasn't great so that's how it had to happen.

thaformula.com - What's your normal training like at home. How do you start your day off and what do you do from there?

Nate Diaz - I run 5 miles a couple of days a week. I ride a bike to like 25 to 35 miles a couple of days a week. I box 4 or 5 days a week and grapple every day and wrestling. It's pretty much all training all day. So it's eat, sleep and train basically.

thaformula.com - What's your diet like and do you and your brother train and eat the same?

Nate Diaz - Yeah, I eat natural foods, organic foods and try to eat lower carbs. I make sure I'm eating my carbs every day but lower then usual when I'm getting closer to the fight so I make weight and that's pretty much it. If I'm eating all natural, all organic all the time, I'm pretty much good. You've got to be healthy man. That's the thing, we are probably more healthy then a lot of other fighters out here who probably eat like shit. You got to eat healthy all the time man just to make yourself feel good and feel better about training and everything. I eat fish and shrimp. I don't really eat beef or turkey or chicken or anything like that. I don't eat any other meat but fish.

thaformula.com - What do you think about the whole steroids issue man. Do you think a lot of fighters are on steroids?

Nate Diaz - Dude I think everybody is on that shit. I mean not everybody but there are a lot of motherfuckers out there that are on it. I don't think it helps you to be honest with you. I have trained with men who are 'roided and I know all kinds of people and all it does is make them think slow and tired man.

thaformula.com - Now I know you and your brother recently did an Iron Man competition. What was the deal with that?

Nate Diaz - Yeah, I did a half Iron Man actually about 2 weeks ago. It was a pretty good one. It was a 1.2 mile swim, a 57 mile bike ride and a 13 mile run and that was pretty cool because it puts me in good shape and makes me feel stronger because that's harder then fighting, I'll tell you that much. That was actually my second half Iron Man but I do Triathlons during the season. I do them all season long. It helps you stay in shape and to stay healthy. If your not gonna fight for a while, you don't have much to keep you busy man so you better be getting ready for something and I don't think a lot of fighters do that. You got to always stay busy and stay competing in something. On top of that, while you are doing that, you're getting your road work done and getting in shape. Even if I didn't fight I would probably do that anyway.

thaformula.com - Do you guys do any weight training at all?

Nate Diaz - A little bit. Not like heavy weights or nothing like that. Just heavy reps and light weight. It's kind of leverage more then strength sometimes you know. You got to have the technique and know what your doing and I feel especially for me I'm kind of big in the weight class so I don't think strength is a big thing for me. I mean a lot of people are stronger then me even at my weight class but its like you have to use leverage because you can't really depend on strength all the time like some people think.

thaformula.com - Now let's talk about the whole Karo situation on the show. First off, is there always gonna be a Judo and Jiu Jitsu rivalry because at times it seems like that's what it is becoming between a lot of Judo and Jiu Jitsu guys?

Nate Diaz - Nah, the thing is he acts like what he does is all fucking Judo. That guy does Jiu Jitsu. He does Judo too, but once he hits the ground, what he's doing Jiu Jitsu to. So it's not Judo versus Jiu Jitsu because he does Jiu Jitsu. But we do Judo too. We do the same thing. Judo might be his favorite technique though, but we do Judo and he does Jiu Jitsu too. It's not like Judo versus Jiu Jitsu.

thaformula.com - So now let's get into the whole situation with Karo on the show now. Break it down for us?

Nate Diaz - The thing is, is that dude uh, they tried to make it out like I'm getting punked in there. They were trying to make me look bad. They were talking about "Karo Parysian gets nuts on Nate Diaz" or some shit like that. I'm like "yeah right." I'm the one who said something you know what I'm saying?

thaformula.com - You guys seemed real cool in the beginning of the show though. What went wrong or what happened that maybe we might not have seen?

Nate Diaz - Well the thing was that he was kind of like talking down on me. We got cool and then he was trying to act too cool. He was grabbing my shoulder and talking down to me. He was kind of slapping my back and shit and fucking grabbing my head when I was sitting on the ground. I got up and I was like "hey bro don't fucking touch me." Because I was cool with him or whatever but it's like not like that. You don't just fucking start touching people you don't know. Like he ain't my boy or nothing, I didn't grow up with him, so I was just like "bro what the fuck are you doing? Don't touch me." Then he's like, "what?" I'm like, "don't fucking touch me," and he's like, "are you serious? Are you serious?" So I was like "yeah I'm fucking serious" and that's when he was like trying to grab me and was like "come here, come here." I was like "nah homie get the fuck off me." And then that's when he was trying to act hard. The way I see it is they are trying to make me look like I got punked, but it was like "yeah right." That motherfucker didn't punk shit man. We will see how it turns out man and how it looks on the show. If it makes me look bad like it is doing now, fools gonna catch one when I see him. That's what that's gonna come down to.

thaformula.com - Do you get a chance to look at the shows before they air?

Nate Diaz - Nah, I've seen as much as you've seen dude.

thaformula.com - Have you and Karo ever had any problems before the show?

Nate Diaz - No, I just didn't like his attitude on the show man. He's just not very respectful or a very nice person you know. He kind of talks out of line sometimes and says some dumb shit. He don't know how to watch his mouth. Even how old he is, he's older then me and you would figure he would know how to act around people. But really he doesn't and is kind of disrespectful and shit. You didn't even hear some of the stuff he said to Jens and some other stuff. I was just looking at him the whole time like "what the fuck are you saying when your a guest here? Why don't you have some respect?" He kind of tried to clown on Jens a little. Jens is the coach and it's his thing and Karo was a guest you know? He's talking shit to Jens and I'm just looking at him like "dude why don't you have some fucking respect you know because this is Jens thing. Just because your cousin is here doesn't mean you can come in and try to act like the man and start talking shit to Jens and talking stupid shit."

thaformula.com - Now a lot of people seem to either love you guys or hate you guys. Why do you think that is and have you noticed that?

Nate Diaz - Yeah. The thing is I'm not fucking around with what I do. There are a lot of bitches in what we do if that makes any sense at all. There are a lot of people who are fighters, but they are not real fighters. Like, there is a lot of jock fighters you know? Kind of like it makes me feel like they are rich kids and they are more like the type of people who are frontin' and talking their shit and trying to act tough, but then outside of the cage they are like "haha that was a good game, good job" and like "that was fun right?" But its like I treat everyone the same no matter where I'm at, I'm not frontin' in the cage you know? The same thing with my brother and people like that or hate that. They think you're a punk, but I ain't trying to be a punk, that's just kind of the way it is. People don't like that sometimes. They think your trying to act like a punk or trying to be something but that's just the way it is basically you know? I'm not trying to really act like nothing when a lot of other people are you know? So it's like hate it or love it. That's why you probably get a lot of people who don't like us.

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