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Nate Diaz explains eye injury that 'screwed him' in Ben Henderson fight

Nate Diaz explains eye injury that 'screwed him' in Ben Henderson fight at UFC on FOX 5 - MMAmania.com

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All those mixed martial arts (MMA) fans who were disappointed that Nate Diaz wasn't able to get any offense going in his lightweight title fight against Ben Henderson last Saturday night at UFC on FOX 5 in Seattle, say "eye."

The former division number one contender was "screwed" early in the fight, after the champion landed a "Smooth" punch right on the peeper during their KeyArena headliner on the network television broadcast. While Diaz was hoping for a quick recovery, things just went from bad to worse.

From the UFC on FOX 5 post-fight press conference:

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"I didn't perform the way I wish I could have. I got a punch in the eye pretty early in the fight and things were blurry. They never came back. I was waiting for it to recover, and when it did I was going to come back strong. But it never did. Ben did great. He landed the good shot early. It was blurry. I was screwed. If I would have tried to get up with anything, or tried to aggress too hard, I think things could've gotten worse. Like I said, I was trying to wait for the eye to recover, until I could see straight. Because I knew it was coming back and I knew I was going to come back strong from it, but I never did. I ran out of time with it, and it sucks. But whatever, that's what happens."

Benson borrowed thigh punch from Bruce Leeroy - Mixed Martial Arts News

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Retweeted by The MMA LAB (Benson Henderson's gym)
‏@xMatthewxOceanx
@BruceLeeroyGlow Haha so you showed @BensonHenderson that knee/thigh punch? Brilliant stuff man!

When the Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz fight was announced, hardcore fans anticipated a battle between Nate's hands and Henderson's wrestling and kicks.

The fight quickly played out that way, before taking a strange turn. Henderson began jabbing Diaz, in the thigh, to the Stockton native's clear discomfort.

Techniques get added to the MMA repetoire when they work, and this one works. Sometimes a move become distinctively associated with an individual, like the Von Flue or Darse chokes. However, the thigh punch won't be called the Benson, as in a post fight interview with FUEL TV, the reigning UFC Lightweight champion said he got the move from Alex "Bruce Leeroy" Caceres, who perhaps got the idea from Anderson Silva vs. Thales Leites in 2009.

“I actually planned that," said Henderson. "I’ve got to thank Alex Caceres on that one. He came up to the MMA Lab and he did it to me and it actually hurt. He’s a 135-pounder, he weighs 150 pounds soaking wet, and he did it to me and it hurt me.

"I started using it and did it to my sparring partners and it hurt them. They asked me to stop because it hurt too much. It worked. I stole it from Alex and thank him very much.

"It was effective. You saw it against Nate Diaz and it was pretty effective. I’m always trying to add new tricks, work on my fundamentals, and get better and improve.”

I loved watching Nate Diaz get dropped from a thigh punch.

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Originally Posted by Sakara=Excitement (Post 990952)

I loved watching Nate Diaz get dropped from a thigh punch.

To Nate's defense, it was hurting Ben's training partners enough for them to ask him to stop doing it.. And they were expecting it / aware of this new move. I am sure it caught Nate off guard and possibly off balance. I bet timed right, Benson could drop over half the LW div with a punch like that if he caught them flush and by suprise.

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"I’ve got to thank Alex Caceres on that one. He came up to the MMA Lab and he did it to me and it actually hurt. He’s a 135-pounder, he weighs 150 pounds soaking wet, and he did it to me and it hurt me.

"I started using it and did it to my sparring partners and it hurt them. They asked me to stop because it hurt too much.

Oh I read it. I'm aware of what the interview said.

It's still funny as shit.

I'm surprised Benson didnt catch a knee to the face when he did that punch. It looks like he has to get in close and his head ends up being in a good spot to get kneed. My guess is he doesnt do that against someone with good muy thai.

I was expecting Diaz to say "he poked me in the eye with a toothpick" lol

Ben had a little more success with the punch than Anderson did..
http://i44.tinypic.com/33c9no2.jpg

So the excuse is he lost because he got punched. Good one.

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Originally Posted by Y2JUBAE (Post 990974)

So the excuse is he lost because he got punched. Good one.

Doesnt sound like excuses to me. Diaz gave Bendo the props and explianed where he felt his game lacked... Is it not possible to talk about losing a fight with out it being an 'excuse'?

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Ben did great. He landed the good shot early. It was blurry. I was screwed. If I would have tried to get up with anything, or tried to aggress too hard, I think things could've gotten worse