Combat sports superstars Nate Diaz and Jorge “Gamebred” Masvidal will bring their epic rivalry to a long-awaited, violent conclusion on Saturday, June 1 when they square off in a professional boxing showdown headlining “LAST MAN STANDING” from the Kia Forum in Los Angeles.
This mega event will include a loaded undercard and be preceded by a multiple-city promotional tour and shoulder programming bringing fans inside the fighters’ camps (details to be announced).
Already MMA legends who have garnered legions of fans with their combination of thrilling fighting styles and outspoken personalities, Diaz vs. Masvidal marks the first time two true MMA stars will go toe-to-toe in a boxing ring. Throughout their storied careers, these two fighters have accounted for three of the top 10 highest-selling pay-per-view events in UFC history, with over 10 million pay-per-view buys combined over their careers.
Each fighter has risen to the top of the combat sports world with an aggressive, “in your face” style that is as identifiable as the cities they represent, with Diaz hailing from Stockton, California and Masvidal from Miami, Florida. While each has taken a different path to his iconic status, the two pride themselves on being self-made fighters and finally met in 2019 at Madison Square Garden in an event so big it marked the first time a sitting President of the United States attended a UFC show.
This first meeting saw Masvidal take home the inaugural “BMF” title belt, a Diaz inspired belt based on his constant assertion that the style he and Masvidal bring forward made them the “baddest” in the game. The bout ended prematurely in the eyes of many, as a cut over Diaz’s eyebrow resulted in a TKO for Masvidal. With the cut leading to an unsatisfying ending, June 1 marks an opportunity for these two warriors to finally battle it out to the finish.
The world-renowned MMA superstar Diaz shattered box office and pay-per-view records across the board with his rivalry against Conor McGregor that reached beyond the combat sports arena. Diaz split the two fights with McGregor, earning 1.3 million pay-per-view buys in the first matchup and 1.6 million buys in the rematch. Already established as one of MMA’s all-time biggest stars, Diaz is now immersed in his boxing career after making his ring debut in 2023 against Jake Paul in Dallas in front of a sold-out crowd at the American Airlines Center. An avid triathlete and martial artist, Diaz’s boxing training has included being a regular sparring partner of undefeated boxing legend, Andre Ward.
The fighting pride of his native Miami, Masvidal reached superstardom by delivering memorable action again and again across years of fighting at the highest levels. Among his accolades, Masvidal won the UFC’s Fight of the Night award three times as well as Performance of the Night four times. His all-action style also allowed him to record the fastest knockout in UFC history at just five seconds. In a career full of blockbuster events, his challenge of Kamaru Usman in 2020 stood out, as the mega-fight garnered 1.3 million pay-per-view buys. Already with a professional boxing victory on his record, he can now kickstart the boxing portion of his already-legendary career with an emphatic victory over Diaz in this anticipated duel.
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