Nick Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi

Nick Diaz versus Takanori Gomi was one of the last great fights put on by the teetering Pride organization, and stands as an all-time MMA classic.

After leaving the UFC in 2006 riding a three-fight winning streak, Stockton, California bad boy Nick Diaz entered the Pride Fighting Championships in 2007 and faced perhaps its biggest star, Japan’s Takanori Gomi, known as “The Fireball Kid.” After a wild affair that outpaced even the announcers, Diaz submitted Gomi, the Pride Lightweight Champion, with a Gogoplata in the second round. Unfortunately, the win was overturned and officially ruled a No Contest after Diaz tested positive for marijuana, but the performance remains one of his very best.

“I want to fight the champions,” Gomi said prior to the bout. “St. Pierre, Matt Hughes, BJ Penn in the U.S., the birthplace of MMA.” “If he doesn’t take me seriously, then he’s just going to lose quicker,” Diaz said. Diaz entered the ring first. Said guest commentator Josh Barnett: “Diaz is incredibly tough and hard to finish.” Gomi entered second. McEachern: “With Pride in the U.S., he has to prove that he’s a road warrior as well.” Barnett: “He’s got fireballs coming out of both fists that put his opponents on the mat.”

The men started off the affair with wild punching exchanges. After taking a hard shot to the head that dropped him early and badly swelled one eye, Diaz settled into his rythym, peppering Gomi with endless flurries that frustrated and exhausted the Japanese fighter for the remainder of the round. By first trying to finish the fight when Diaz was hurt, and then by trying to keep up with Diaz’s torrid striking pace, Gomi looked to have completely punched himself out. Said Barnett: “His [Gomi’s] arms look like they’re dead weight out there.”

As the second round began, Gomi found a brief second wind that once again nearly won him the fight. Gomi landed a crushing right hand that opened up a deep gash under the right eye of Diaz, who was now both swollen up and bleeding profusely. Even though Diaz was still the fresher fighter, the contest looked to be nearing its end as doctors examined the injury. Shortly after the restart, however, an exhausted Gomi made the mistake of shooting in on the Cesar Gracie-trained Jiu-Jitsu fighter, who effortlessly locked in a Gogoplata at the 1:46 mark. It took a few moments for the reality to sink in: Diaz had deftly and instinctively applied one of the more rare and exotic submissions in a Jiu-Jitsu fighter’s arsenal to defeat a standing champion after an extraordinary striking match. The ending made the already thrilling affair an all-time classic.

In a frustrating denoument, Diaz tested positive for extremely high blood THC (marijuana) concentrations following the bout, and had the win stripped from his record. But his stock among fans and promoters as well as his ranking in the lightweight division rose considerably after he submitted a man many considered the best lightweight in the world.