"Free my boy" - Nate Diaz pleads for Chael Sonnen's name to be cleared

Nate Diaz is the latest fighter to extend his support to former middleweight and light heavyweight title challenger Chael Sonnen.

Sonnen was recently charged with 5 counts of battery citation after allegedly brutalizing five separate individuals in a luxury hotel last Saturday. Diaz, a close friend of Sonnen's, called for the former UFC star's name to be cleared. In a now deleted post on Twitter, the Stockton native wrote:

"Idk wtf what happen or care but free my boy [Chael Sonnen]."

A screensot of Diaz's deleted Tweet

Diaz has now posted another tweet with the same message while slightly altering his previous tweet.

TMZ sports was the first to report the incident. A witness told them they saw Sonnen "banging on the door of a hotel room at the Four Seasons around 7 PM Saturday night." On Monday, Las Vegas police confirmed that Sonnen had committed a misdemeanor battery against five separate victims.

Nate Diaz also made headlines over the weekend as he was in attendance for Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley 2 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. A video of the UFC welterweight superstar went viral after he hilariously made Caresse Archer flinch with a fake punch.

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Former UFC fighters echo Nate Diaz's sentiments about Chael Sonnen

Like Nate Diaz, former UFC stars Brendan Schaub and Michael Bisping expressed their support for Chael Sonnen.

In a recent episode of his podcast, Below the Belt , Schaub shed some insight into the altercation involving Sonnen. The former heavyweight, who claimed he received an update from Sonnen through a phone call, stated:

"Some drunk guy with his girl kept making comments about his [Sonnen’s] wife, talking about her t*ts, her a**, right in front of him. Well, play stupid games win stupid prizes. Because you’re talking and disrespecting one of the toughest guys on the planet. And definitely one of the toughest to ever compete in the UFC, or Bellator for that matter. And you’re doing it in front of his face, and there’s going to be repercussions."

Brendan Schaub tells Chael Sonnen's version of events:

Bisping also defended Sonnen during an episode of his Believe You Me podcast. 'The Count' claimed Sonnen is a "level-headed" individual who wouldn't cause a scene unless "something inappropriate" was said to his wife.