Logan Paul, Nate Diaz Were 'Very Close' to Fight Agreement Before WWE Got Involved

Prior to signing on to fight Jake Paul, former UFC star Nate Diaz nearly agreed to a boxing match against Paul's older brother, Logan Paul.

According to ESPN's Marc Raimondi, one of Diaz's representatives, Zach Rosenfield, said there was a "very interesting and attractive offer" for Diaz to fight Logan Paul, but the former MMA fighter soured on the idea when WWE got involved.

Per Raimondi, Diaz said: "The WWE came in and then they wanted to take over the whole thing. And I'm like, 'I just got out of the UFC, why am I going to sign with WWE?' I fight for real. I'm not gonna be doing a real fight on a WWE card or no funny s--t like that."

Logan Paul, who is under a WWE contract and has wrestled several matches for the company since making his in-ring debut last year at WrestleMania 38, called Diaz's rationale a "weak cop-out" before adding:

"You can still be a real fighter with the biggest sports organization in the world promoting your fight. It's a little lame to me, and I can definitely sell more tickets. I see what he's doing. I'm the harder fight. I'm the bigger brother, I'm the stronger brother, I'm the faster brother."

Before Diaz turned it down, Raimondi noted that Diaz vs. Logan Paul was "very close" to the point that Logan informed Jake that the fight was going to happen.

Instead, Diaz and Jake Paul turned their attention toward each other, and their bout was made official for Aug. 5.

Diaz is making his professional boxing debut, but the 38-year-old veteran enjoyed great success in MMA, going 21-13 in his career and owning victories over Conor McGregor, Anthony Pettis and Tony Ferguson.

Meanwhile, the 26-year-old Jake Paul has the experience edge in boxing terms, as he made his pro debut in 2020 and has since gone 6-1 with wins over former MMA stars such as Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley and Anderson Silva.

As for Logan Paul, he had a pro fight against fellow YouTuber KSI in 2019 and later faxed Floyd Mayweather Jr. in an exhibition in 2021, but he has been more focused on pro wrestling as of late.

Logan's star has continued to rise in WWE, and it could reach new heights on Saturday when he faces Ricochet at SummerSlam on the same night Jake Paul and Diaz finally clash.

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