Strikeforce Daley vs. Diaz: Taking a Look at How They Match Up

On April 9, Nick Diaz and Paul Daley will step inside the Strikeforce cage at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, Calif. and contest for the welterweight championship.

This will be the first Strikeforce "Arena Show" under Zuffa since the buyout. Both fighters are hard-hitting veterans of the sport with resumes that speak for themselves. This fight is promising for a knockout, however, as we all know with mixed marital arts, anything can happen in a fight, and this one is no different.

Diaz, the current Strikeforce welterweight champion sporting a 25-7-1 career record, is a former UFC fighter that has fought the toughest competitors in the world. He has contested against the likes of Robbie Lawler, Karo Parysian, Drew Fickett, Diego Sanchez and Gleison Tibeau.

He is no doubt a tough fighter and a veteran in the sport. Since leaving the UFC in 2006, he has amassed an impressive 10 wins with only one loss and a no contest, which came against Takanori Gomi, a fight he actually won but was overturned into a no contest due to a failed drug test for marijuana.

Diaz is a fierce striker, and has won fights due to KO or TKO a total of nine times in his career. He is somewhat of an unconventional striker, but has fluid movement.

Not only does he have this in his repertoire, Diaz is also an accomplished ground specialist. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Cesar Gracie, Diaz has won eight submission victories by way of armbar, kimura, rear naked choke and the like. He no doubt has the skill to win the fight in any capacity.

Daley, a native of England, is a sheer knockout artist. With a record of 27-9-2, Daley has won a total of 19 fights by TKO or KO. With brutal power in his strikes, Daley is a brute force on the feet, and is something all of his opponents should be weary of.

He is a former UFC competitor as well, with an exit from the promotion in the now infamous incident involving Josh Koscheck in which he struck Koscheck with a punch after the final bell tolled, prompting UFC president Dana White to release him from his Zuffa contract and promise Daley would never compete inside of the Octagon again.

He has competed against the likes of Koscheck, John Alessio, Jake Shields, Martin Kampmann and Dustin Hazelett, to name a few.

While there is no doubt about his striking ability, Daley's wrestling and ground fighting is something to be questioned. Daley has never won a fight due to submission by technique, and was manhandled in his fight against Koscheck in May of 2010 at UFC 113 in Montreal, which was a No. 1 contender's fight for the welterweight championship. This is where his fight against Diaz can get tricky.

As stated above, Diaz can win the fight in any fashion, wherever the fight dictates itself. Daley has one strength, and that is standing up, and even there Daley is subject to losing the fight as Diaz himself has the ability to knock him out. Should the fight go to the ground, or Diaz attempt to wrestle Daley, Diaz is near certain to win this fight, either by submission or decision.

Overall, both men have a legitimate chance of winning this fight, however, I give Daley a better chance if the fight stays standing as opposed to the ground. If Diaz does dictate the fight to the floor, Daley's chances of victory decreases substantially.

It is sure to prove to be a great fight, and one that people will definitely be watching with anticipation, and we will see if Diaz is able to retain his world welterweight championship, or if Daley is able to add another title to his collection.