Drama often seems to follow Nate Diaz and his team.
Throughout their MMA careers, both Nick and Nate Diaz have been involved in numerous altercations, contributing to their status as major fan favorites.
Nate, who entered the UFC through ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ was recently announced to be coaching in an unexpected new project.
Diaz and Jon Jones were scheduled to appear on ‘ALF Reality,’ a Russian program akin to ‘TUF,’ which has previously featured several UFC stars as coaches.
However, it seems comments made by Diaz and Jones regarding Islam Makhachev were just the beginning of controversy that erupted almost instantly.
Brawl Leads to Exit After Concerns Over Past Conflicts with Nurmagomedov and Chimaev Camps
In a recent YouTube video, Jake Shields recounted the brief and “chaotic” experience of filming ‘ALF Reality’ in Thailand alongside Nate Diaz.
Shields mentioned early in the video that he and the team were hesitant about participating, citing their history of conflicts with individuals associated with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Khamzat Chimaev.
Upon arriving at the location and being met by many Russians and Chechens, Shields recalled a concern that they might be provoked.
Shields noted that while things quieted slightly upon Jon Jones’s arrival, the overall production felt highly unprofessional, with crew seemingly disorganized and contestants frequently fighting without intervention.
According to Shields, one fighter, reportedly known for causing trouble on prior seasons, attempted to provoke Diaz. When Shields intervened to deter future provocations, he claims a crew member struck him.
The former UFC title challenger expressed strong doubt that with such a large crew present, nobody managed to prevent the individual from attempting to attack people.
Consequently, Diaz and his team chose to leave and did not return to continue filming the series.
Shields described the scene: “When a couple of guys tried to rush me, looking at a hundred people around, I thought, ‘Okay, I need to deescalate this, don’t get wild.’ We calmed down, stayed a bit longer, but it was pure chaos. Fights nearly happened constantly, people were getting hit. It was too much. We decided to leave, and they tried to stop us, but we just said, ‘No, we are leaving.’”
Drama Follows Diaz and Team Even After Leaving the Set
Jake Shields concluded the video by mentioning that several fighters reportedly claimed they were looking for Nate Diaz and his team.
Shields clarified that locating them would have been easy for anyone genuinely looking, as they remained at the same hotel they were taken to and spent time publicly at the beach.
Shields stated, “People have been sending me videos from Russian Instagram and TV. Supposedly, these Russian and Chechen fighters were looking for us around Thailand. But the drivers took us directly to our hotel; they knew exactly where we were. We were in the same area for three or four days, visiting the same places. Everyone knew where we were; we were just relaxing there. They were just talking tough.”
Percy Harlow