Nick Diaz Talks Greg Hardy in UFC, Says Football Players Make Good MMA Fighters

Former UFC welterweight fighter Nick Diaz said football players make more exciting transitions to MMA than wrestlers, who are often content with their one-dimensional style.

On Thursday, TMZ Sports passed along Diaz's response when asked about Greg Hardy, who owns a 3-0 MMA record as an amateur after playing six seasons in the NFL.

"Football players, they actually do the best in MMA," he said.

Hardy spoke with TMZ Sports this week about getting an opportunity to earn a UFC contract through the upcoming UFC Contender Series.

"Man, I'm ecstatic," the former Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman said. "I'm above the clouds right now, man. It's just it's the opportunity that I've been waiting for, that I've been training for and God's blessed me with it."

After three straight first-round knockout victories in the lower levels of MMA, the 29-year-old Tennessee native will begin his journey toward the UFC on June 12 by taking on Brandon Sayles during the first week of competition in Season 2 of the UFC Contender Series.

Sayles, 37, is 5-1 with three wins by knockout and two by submission.

Diaz—who also explained how hard-hitting fighters like Hardy can improve their stock with an entertaining display in losses to wrestling-based opponents—last fought in January 2015.