"As soon as I saw Nathan hit him with that left hand and it buckled him, I knew it was over because Nathan is a finisher. He was throwing more punches and the guy went to the ground because he couldn't take the punishment and going to the ground was just as bad. You fight Nathan, his stand-up is good and on the ground, he's really good, so pick your poison. There is nowhere to hide at all," stated Richard Perez, world-class boxing trainer of UFC star Nate Diaz, who talked about the game plan they used in their victory over UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor. Check it out!
PC: Nate Diaz went in there and took care of business against Conor McGregor on short notice. What did you think of his performance?
RP: It was awesome! Nathan did an awesome job.
PC: When you have a short camp like that, what are some of the focal points to prepare him for a big fight like that in such a short period of time?
RP: Boxing and Jiu Jitsu! We wanted to make sure he was sharp there, and really just running and bike riding. That's what we focused on. I watched how McGregor fights because I was trying to figure out what he does in the first two rounds. We were right. We knew in the first round he would come out hard and fast and he did.
PC: When you were studying film of Conor, what were your thoughts on him as an opponent?
RP: He's tough. He's a good fighter, don't get me wrong. He's knocked a lot of people out. We knew that and we knew he would come out hard and fast and Nathan and I worked on it mainly for those first two rounds. He is a good fighter. People may say things about him, but that's why he's up there, but Nathan's better and now he's up top.
PC: You don't do what he did to Jose Aldo and not be a good fighter for sure.
RP: Yeah! It didn't help us that we did it on two-weeks notice, but we did it. It was okay.
PC: Nate didn't like the way he was getting hit with shots in round one. He felt that was one of the crutches to not having a camp. What did you tell him in between rounds?
RP: I told him to start letting his hands go; move around, start pumping that jab and set that left hand up. I knew he could use his reach and land that left hand. I knew if he used his reach, he would catch him and he did. You can hear me in the background, barely, but at one point, I even asked, "You hear me," and he said, "Yeah!" He probably had it planned already too, but me saying that helped him out I guess because he did it.
PC: Once he hurt Conor with that left hand and the fight went to the ground, did you sense the end was near or did you think Conor may be able to survive and fight into the third round?
RP: As soon as I saw Nathan hit him with that left hand and it buckled him, I knew it was over because Nathan is a finisher. He was throwing more punches and the guy went to the ground because he couldn't take the punishment and going to the ground was just as bad. You fight Nathan, his stand-up is good and on the ground, he's really good, so pick your poison. There is nowhere to hide at all.
PC: Nate has looked really good in his last couple of fights. Would you credit that to the break he took away from the sport?
RP: Yes! Yes! That helped him out a lot mentally and physically because he was fighting all of the time. Sometimes you have to step away and recharge the battery and when you recharge that battery, you come back a lot stronger.
PC: Nate mentioned it in his post-fight interview; he hasn't gotten anything easy in his career. What was it like for you to see him pull out that victory and get some well-deserved accolades and press because you have been there every step of the way.
RP: It was a big burden off of my back and probably off of his back. It was a big relief, and honestly, it was better than winning a world title fight. This guy, they talked about him so much. From what I heard, Georges St. Pierre didn't want to take the fight because it was short notice, so I get it. BJ Penn wanted more time and money; that's what I heard, I'm not sure. So then they called Nathan and I was like, "You taking this fight?" And he said, "Yeah!" He had got sick in Cabo. I said, "When are you coming?" He said, "Tomorrow," and the next day we started training. That was just a high seeing him win that fight and get praised. It was truly bigger than a world title fight. That really brought him up, and only having two weeks to prepare, that was impressive.
PC: Given a full training camp, do you think that fight plays out differently and even more so in favor of Nate?
RP: Oh, heck yeah! In the first round, Nathan would have been picking it up with the jab, front kicks, leg kicks, and been a lot busier. He knew he had to have a slower start and get through that first round and I knew he would pick it up in the second round. You could see in the first round he was fighting like someone pacing himself in case it was a long fight. But he picked the pace up in the second and the rest is history.
PC: How soon would you like to see him compete again?
RP: Well, he has a cut on his eye. He has a little scar tissue there and he has to let that heal. After that, we will have to see what they put on the table.
PC: Would you like to see him stay at 170? Is there a preference on weight for you?
RP: For me, I think he would want to fight at 155 and fight dos Anjos. That's his goal, but this guy made the offer at 170 and he took it. Nathan wanted to fight at lightweight, but this guy didn't. He wanted 170, so I knew he was overweight. He was pumping a lot of iron too because they showed it before the fight. He was working out hard. Nathan and I knew that pumping all of that iron is not going to get you anywhere if you can't knock him out. Nathan knows how to move and box.
PC: You're an old school boxing guy, so I know you're not big on lifting weights.
RP: No, not a lot. You can lift weights, but not like that. That was crazy. But some people do it.
PC: Congratulations again. You guys deserve it and best of luck moving forward my man.
RP: Thank you, Percy. I appreciate it.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]