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UFC president Dana White once described the experience of signing with the promotion as an opportunity as opposed to a career. It is a sentiment that isn't shared by many of the UFC's current fighters, leading some to question whether remaining with the UFC is sensible in the long term.
Fighters like Yoel Romero and Corey Anderson, who had previous grievances with the UFC, signed with rival promotion Bellator MMA. Among the most vocal critics of the promotion's organizational structure is Nate Diaz. The Stockton legend is scheduled to face undefeated welterweight phenom Khamzat Chimaev this Saturday at UFC 279.
Ahead of the bout, Diaz spoke about his frustrations with the UFC turning down his proposed matchup with Dustin Poirier before leaving the MMA world scratching its head by calling for bouts with Israel Adesanya and Francis Ngannou. While Dana White eventually convinced him to accept a fight with Chimaev, Nate Diaz took the opportunity to launch his own promotion, Real Fight Inc., where he hopes to right the perceived wrongs of the UFC.
In honor of Nate Diaz's decision, this list looks at 5 fighters who became MMA promoters, be it for one reason or another.
#5. Urijah Faber, A1 Combat Series
Often credited with bringing more attention to the lower weight classes during a time when fight fans were more interested in heavyweight MMA clashes, Urijah Faber is a legend of the sport beloved by many. The former WEC featherweight champion harnessed that goodwill by launching his own promotion, Urijah Faber's A1 Combat Series. A1 Combat was launched in May this year and recently had its fifth show three days ago.
While Faber has not stepped inside the octagon since his knockout loss to former bantamweight champion Petr Yan three years ago, his connection to the UFC remains as strong as ever. A1 Combat Series events are streamed on UFC Fight Pass, exposing 'The California Kid's' promotion to a wider range of fight fans who might otherwise miss it were it aired elsewhere. With his days as an active MMA fighter behind him, Faber's aimed his focus on being an MMA promoter.
#4. Donald Cerrone, Cowboy Fight Series
Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone has finally retired from active MMA competition after 55 thrilling fights. Unfortunately, Cerrone's last seven fights were all unsuccessful outings. Four years ago, Cerrone was in a different position. He had just suffered a lopsided loss to former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson, snapping his three-fight win streak in a bout that would begin his downward spiral.
However, after the brutal loss, 'Cowboy' announced his plans to launch an amateur MMA promotion called Cowboy Fight Series. According to Cerrone's own Instagram post, the promotion's purpose is to unearth the next generation of great mixed martial artists by offering amateur MMA fighters a platform on which to earn professional contracts, while also affording them the opportunity to train with Cerrone himself at the BMF ranch with the world's top-ranked fighters.
#3. Jorge Masvidal, Gamebred Fighting Championship and iKON FC
Three years ago in 2019, Jorge Masvidal's popularity erupted in a manner rarely seen in the UFC. The veteran of 51 fights had embarked on a three-fight win streak that saw him flatten Darren Till after the latter's title fight with Tyron Woodley, earn the fastest knockout in UFC history by being the first-ever fighter to defeat the then-undefeated former ONE and Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren, and TKO MMA legend Nate Diaz to capture the celebratory BMF championship.
While his two subsequent bouts were lopsided losses to former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, Masvidal sold 1.3 million pay-per-view buys in their first fight to announce himself as a true superstar in the sport. To capitalize on his popularity, 'Gamebred' launched two MMA promotions. The first was Gamebred Fighting Championship, a bare-knuckle MMA promotion. His second promotion was iKON FC, which Masvidal designed as a platform for both prospects and veterans.
#2. Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Eagle Fighting Championship
Many fighters launch MMA promotions either after being on the wrong end of losing streaks or after retiring from active competition due to struggling to achieve their goals to capture championship gold. However, Khabib Nurmagomedov abandoned his career as a fighter after defeating Justin Gaethje to defend his UFC lightweight title in what was one of his most dominant victories.
Despite Dana White's attempts to coax him back into the promotion, the Russian great was adamant about honoring his retirement. Instead, Nurmagomedov shocked the world by announcing his intentions to ply his trade as an MMA promoter and purchase Gorilla Fighting Championship, saving it from the brink of bankruptcy.
Rebranding it as Eagle Fighting Championship, Nurmagomedov has already hosted 14 events, even signing UFC alumni Kevin Lee and Junior dos Santos.
#1. Nate Diaz, Real Fight Inc.
Months ago, hardly anyone could have predicted that Nate Diaz would one day announce his intention to launch his own MMA promotion. The MMA legend has always been known for his self-referent nature and streak of fierce independence. Diaz often scoffed at the idea of being friendly with almost any fighter on the roster due to war-like mentality and assertion that all fighters are rivals in a sport where the objective is to inflict bodily harm on one's opposition.
So it came as a surprise to many when Diaz applied for a promoter's license as he announced Real Fight Inc. to the world. The Stockton legend intends to continue his own fighting career while simultaneously committing to his role as an MMA promoter. Thus far, Diaz's goals with Real Fight Inc. remain vague except for an apparent desire to ensure that his promotion is "real" compared to others, especially the UFC, due to Diaz's feud over its organizational structure.
