“We’d be interested” - Chatri Sityodtong willing to sign Nate Diaz to ONE Championship

ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong could shake up the foundations of the sport if he secures the signature of the polarizing Nate Diaz.

In an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Sityodtong said that he and his organization would be interested in signing Diaz to a deal. However, that particular acquisition would veer away from what they’re doing at the moment.

Diaz is one of the most intriguing figures in mixed martial arts, and he’s recently fought his last match in the UFC, beating Tony Ferguson via submission at UFC 279 this past September. The 37-year-old from Stockton, California, hinted that he’d like to pursue boxing after his exit from the US-based promotion.

Sityodtong even likened Diaz's career path to that of new signing Roberto Soldic. The Croatian star, who’s set to make his debut in December, signed with ONE Championship because of his goal of becoming a world champion in multiple disciplines.

ONE Championship currently has world titles in mixed martial arts, Muay Thai, kickboxing, and submission grappling. Diaz, who has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, might be an exciting addition to the organization’s growing submission grappling scene.

Chatri Sityodtong said:

“What makes Nate interesting, obviously, is that he wants to do multiple sports and so that is definitely the platform of ONE. When you look at Roberto [Soldic], he says he wants to win world titles in all the major disciplines and he wants to be the greatest combat sports athlete ever.”

He added:

"I think having [it] all in one platform, that’s kind of Roberto’s thing, so when I look at Nate, there’s a possibility of that as well, like in boxing and grappling. I know he wants to do that so I mean, yeah, we’d be interested but it’s not our typical path.”

Watch Chatri Sityodtong's full interview below:

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Chatri Sityodtong wants to sign fighters entering their primes

Chatri Sityodtong, who also serves as the chairman of ONE Championship, told Helwani that the organization’s directive is to sign fighters who are entering their prime years, and it has done just that in the past few months.

ONE Championship recently hit a goldmine of signings when it secured Soldic, Mikey Musumeci, Kade Ruotolo, Tye Ruotolo, and Danielle Kelly, just to name a few.

Musumeci even became the inaugural ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion when he beat Cleber Sousa at ONE on Prime Video 2.

Chatri Sityodtong said that even though ONE Championship is set to debut on American soil in 2023, it would sign fighters depending on their notoriety and not on their nationality.

“Across the many different disciplines, we’ve seen the rise of different stars, irrespective of nationality, truly global stars, right? It’s just beginning. Of course, you know, the team is signing more American athletes.”

He added:

“We would love any of the hottest free agents who come up in their primes. We have a little bit of different strategies than the other organizations. The strategy is to sign people in their prime, typically.