12: 03 AM ET
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Marc RaimondiESPN Group Writer
LAS VEGAS — Robbie Lawler got right here over to a sitting Crop Diaz and grabbed his palms. The two attach their foreheads together as a signal of admire.
Lawler and Diaz, two aging opponents revered for his or her classic MMA fights, went to battle all over again Saturday night at UFC 266 at T-Mobile Enviornment. The two pushed a relentless tempo — especially alive to in they are both nearer to 40 years worn than 30 — but in the tip, Lawler turned into as soon as the victor by the usage of TKO at 44 seconds of the third spherical.
“Thank you for bringing basically the simplest out of me,” Lawler talked about he advised Diaz later on. “I comprise a range of admire for you. Confidently your lifestyles is gonna rep together and accurate issues are going to occur to you.”
Lawler, the dilapidated UFC welterweight champion, landed a mixture, culminating with a annoying accurate hand to Diaz’s nose that dropped him. Referee Jason Herzog asked Diaz if he wanted to continue, and Diaz shook his head. Herzog waved the bout off.
“That’s what I expected,” Lawler talked about in his postfight interview. “I expected him to push the tempo and strive to interrupt me. And I did now not let him.”
Diaz, a cult well-liked amongst fans, had now not fought since UFC 183 on Jan. 31, 2015, a unanimous resolution loss to Anderson Silva that turned into as soon as later overturned to a no contest when Silva examined obvious for a steroid and Diaz examined obvious for cannabis.
In an interview earlier this week with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Diaz expressed resentment in direction of the sport of MMA and talked about he wasn’t actually obvious why he turned into as soon as fighting. That led to some concerns in the MMA neighborhood about whether Diaz wants to be fighting. But when he turned into as soon as in the Octagon on Saturday, he confirmed he turned into as soon as game, landing prolonged combos and his traditional volume, even supposing the strikes got right here slower than traditional.
“I’ve always had admire for Diaz,” Lawler talked about. “He brings it every freakin’ time he will get into the ring. … He got right here to battle and repair on a hell of a show.”
Later on, Diaz turned into as soon as maintaining a towel as a lot as his nose, which turned into as soon as bleeding. He had now not been accomplished in a fight since 2007 and turned into as soon as accomplished fully as soon as earlier than in one thing rather then a physician’s stoppage (2002). When the bout turned into as soon as stopped Saturday, two judges had the receive tied at 19-19 and the replace had Lawler forward 20-18.
“I knew I turned into as soon as leaking in right here,” Diaz talked about. “I did now not deserve to head away too mighty of a large number.”
This turned into as soon as a rematch of a 2004 fight wherein Diaz knocked out Lawler in the 2d spherical at UFC 47. Saturday’s bout took space at middleweight, a swap that took space all the procedure through fight week at the interrogate of Diaz, and turned into as soon as shriveled for 5 rounds, which is odd for nontitle, non-predominant match bouts.
“No now not as a lot as I attach on a show,” Diaz talked about. “I knew I had it coming. There turned into as soon as a range of stress coming into this one.”
The vital two rounds were very competitive. Diaz landed a bunch of combos in the predominant spherical. Lawler countered with the more sturdy photography in the 2d and third rounds. Diaz actually landed extra significant strikes, 150-131, primarily primarily primarily based on UFC Stats. Diaz is fully the 12th fighter in UFC history to land 150 significant strikes in a loss — and the total other fights went longer than this one, primarily primarily primarily based on ESPN Stats & Details.
The 150 significant strikes are tied for the fifth-most in a middleweight fight, and the 281 mixed significant strikes are tied for the third-most in UFC middleweight history.
Lawler (29-15, 1 NC) had misplaced four straight coming in and had now not obtained since a unanimous resolution over Donald Cerrone at UFC 214 in July 2017. The Florida resident held the UFC welterweight title from 2014 to 2016 with two a success title defenses. Lawler, 39, is a dilapidated Elite Xtreme Fight middleweight champion and has been a legitimate fighter since 2001.
“He is a warrior,” Lawler talked about of Diaz. “That turned into as soon as a rough fight. He turned into as soon as standing accurate there in the pocket. I throw annoying photography, and he turned into as soon as taking them. It turned into as soon as a range of wound. Must you high-tail back and watch the fight, it turned into as soon as a 3-spherical war. I hit reasonably annoying, and it factual wasn’t his night.”
Diaz (26-10, 2 NC) turned into as soon as taking a look for his first victory since 2011, when he beat BJ Penn at UFC 137. The Stockton, California, native is the dilapidated Strikeforce welterweight champion, and he compiled three title defenses earlier than being introduced into UFC for his 2d speed with the promotion. Diaz, 38, is the older brother of fellow UFC star Nate Diaz, also one in every of the most current opponents on the roster.
“I inappropriate some plans,” Lawler talked about.
