Nate Diaz vs Mike Perry: Card, odds, time, date, and where to watch?

• Nate Diaz will face Mike Perry as both fighters return to the cage for the first time in years
• Perry’s age and KO record set him apart, with oddsmakers favoring him heavily
• Diaz has only been knocked out twice in his career, and his record shows that he has won more than half of his fights through submissions

Nate Diaz and Mike Perry will be walking out at the MVP MMA 1, which will be streamed on Netflix as the co-main event on Saturday, May 16. The two fighters are squaring up for what is set to be one of the most exciting fights of the night, and one question remains.

Would Diaz defeat Perry, as both fighters return for their first cage fight in years? The event is held at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, and is part of the fight card that also features Ronda Rousey vs Gina Carano, the top fight for the night.

Perry is listed as the heavy favorite at 66% probability of winning the upcoming bout, but the veteran may yet throw an upset.

Nate Diaz vs Mike Perry fight card

• Ronda Rousey vs Gina Carano (Main Event)
• Nate Diaz vs Mike Perry (Co-Main Event)
• Francis Ngannou vs Philipe Lins
• Salahdine Parnasse vs Kenneth Cross
• Junior Dos Santos vs Robelis Despaigne

Where and when to watch Nate Diaz vs Mike Perry

• Date: Saturday, May 16
• Venue: Intuit Dome, Los Angeles, California
• Watch: Netflix

Tale of the Tape: Diaz vs Perry

Isn’t Nate Diaz retired?

In a sense, Nate Diaz has been retired, yes. His last fight in an MMA cage was back in UFC 279 in September 2022, when he lost by submission to Tony Ferguson.

Perry has also not fought in the MMA for a while - longer than Diaz, as a matter of fact. He last participated in April 2021, but unlike Diaz, the fighter then switched to the Bareknuckle Fighting League, where he went undefeated with 7-0

Diaz is also closer to what would be considered retirement age for fighters - 41, whereas Perry is still a young man at 34, and this matters in the sports world a lot. But the fight is a co-main event for a reason, and while Diaz has about 34% of losing this one, he has one key advantage - grappling.

Can Perry hold on against an opponent with 12 career submissions?

Mike Perry is definitely a sprightlier fighter. He has the age advantage, and even though he is back on some other physical attributes, such as height and reach, he will by all means hold his own well in the cage against Diaz.

What matters here is whether he can avoid getting pinned by Diaz, who has won half of his fights via submission. Out of his 21 fights, 12 have been by submission, which would prove the main challenge for the younger opponent.

If Diaz can close in and withstand Perry’s powerful punches enough to have him in a deadlock, the fight could go very differently. Pure athleticism would matter, though. As to the oddsmakers, they remain rather skeptical of the veteran’s ability to subdue his opponent, giving him about 20% chance of success.

Diaz would need lightning-fast reflexes to identify an opening and take it, without getting hit by Perry, who has one huge advantage in his arsenal - his ability to KO opponents.

Perry’s KO track record should make Diaz nervous

Diaz’s advantage, though, may not be enough. Perry is coming up against an expert grappler, but here is the thing - the younger fighter has never been submitted, and what this means is that Diaz needs to balance his act.

He can’t just start circling Perry looking for that fight-deciding choke, as it could go very badly for him very quickly. Rather, he needs to prepare himself to go the distance if need be, in which case he would almost certainly be outclassed by Perry.

Perry’s main strength, however, lies elsewhere - his KO record. He has won 79% of his fights by KO, 11 in total, out of his 14 fights.

Nate Diaz's record only features two KO defeats

A closer scrutiny of Nate Diaz’s record, though, reveals a very interesting oddity about his fighting career - he has only been defeated by KOs twice. He was caught off guard by a head kick from Josh Thomson and was finished off by a series of explosive punches.

He also lost to a doctor stoppage from Jorge Masvidal. However, fans in Diaz’s camp firmly disagree that the man has ever been knocked out, pointing out the fact that even though he was ruled out of the fight for medical reasons, Diaz never truly lost consciousness in the octagon.

Nate Diaz vs Mike Perry FAQs

What is Nate Diaz’s next fight?

Nate Diaz is facing Mike Perry on Saturday, May 16, as the co-main event for the Ronda Rousey vs Gina Carano fight card.

Has Nate Diaz ever been knocked out?

Yes, technically, he lost two fights in his career by KO so far in his career. Fans, however, argue that he was never truly "knocked unconscious" and dispute this record.

Can Nate Diaz win against Mike Perry?

Diaz has about 34% chance of winning against Perry according to the average odds available for the fight. He also runs a 20% chance of succeeding in submitting Perry.

Image credit: Netflix