Islam Makhachev and Nate Diaz were captured hurling water bottles at one another backstage following yesterday's (Dec. 6) UFC 311 press conference. Makhachev will headline the pay-per-view card against title challenger Arman Tsarukyuan, and the promotion held a media scrum as part of the build-up.
Diaz, who will not feature at UFC 311 on Jan. 18, was in Las Vegas to attend UFC 310, which takes place on Dec. 7. A longtime friend and teammate of the Stockton native, Kron Gracie, will make his return to the octagon against Bryce Mitchell on the main card of the pay-per-view event.
Dustin Poirier, a former opponent of Makhachev and a near-opponent of Diaz, came across the footage of the backstage incident online. 'The Diamond' shared a short reaction, but his post left little doubt in the minds of fans about his desire to face Diaz in the octagon.
Watch Islam Makhachev and Nate Diaz's incident below:
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Poirier wrote this:
"Bring back Nate and let me smash him."
Check out Dustin Poirier's post below:
With the former interim lightweight champion having recently indicated that he will almost certainly only fight once more, a clash with someone of the profile of Diaz would be exactly what 'The Diamond' had hoped for.
Dana White tells Islam Makhachev he looks "f**king big" during backstage interaction
Islam Makhachev was in Las Vegas on Dec. 6 to attend the UFC 311 pre-fight press conference. He will headline the card alongside former opponent Arman Tsarukyan, with the pair set to clash in a rematch for lightweight gold.
The co-main event of the evening will see Makhachev's close friend and teammate, Umar Nurmagomedov, challenge Merab Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title.
A brief exchange between the 155-pound champion and UFC CEO Dana White was captured by ESPN MMA, where White could be heard saying this:
"Good to see you, thanks for coming out. How you feeling? You're looking f**king big, man!"
Check out Dana White and Islam Makhachev's exchange below:
With Makhachev and Nurmagomedov featuring in back-to-back fights, Khabib Nurmagomedov, who will be in both fighters' corners, will have a busy night ahead of him.
So much so that the lightweight champion admitted during the UFC 311 pre-fight press conference that he will likely feel sorry for 'The Eagle' on fight night due to the demands of cornering two fights in a row.