Diego Sanchez
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| Diego Sanchez | |
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| Statistics | |
| Nickname | Nightmare |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg/12 st) |
| Nationality | American |
| Born | December 31, 1981 |
| Fighting out of | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| Town of birth | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| Team/Association | Unijj.com / Alliancemma.com |
| Fighting style | Gaidojutsu |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Wins | 18[1] |
| By knockout | 5 |
| By submission | 9 |
| Losses | 2 |
| Draws | 0 |
| No contests | 0 |
Diego "Nightmare" Sanchez (born December 31, 1981 in Albuquerque, New Mexico) is a Mexican American mixed martial artist (MMA) with a background in wrestling and Gaidojutsu, system of submission wrestling developed by his longtime trainer Greg Jackson. Sanchez currently fights as a welterweight with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He holds notable wins over Kenny Florian, Nick Diaz, Jorge Santiago, Karo Parisyan, and Joe Riggs.
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[edit] MMA career
Sanchez made his MMA debut in 2002 and fought in smaller shows, mostly the King of the Cage promotion. His UFC debut came when he was chosen as a participant on the first season of the reality show, The Ultimate Fighter. He won a contract with the UFC after winning a fight against Kenny Florian, becoming the middleweight winner for the first season of the show. Shortly after, Sanchez dropped to welterweight, defeating Brian Gassaway, Nick Diaz, John Alessio, Karo Parisyan, and Joe Riggs.
Sanchez' last fight before his loss to Josh Koscheck was against Joe Riggs on December 13, 2006 at UFC Fight Night 7. Sanchez landed a right hook that knocked Riggs down, followed by a running knee that knocked Riggs out. Sanchez won at 1:45 of the first round, scoring the first UFC knockout of his career.
Sanchez was then cleared to fight Koscheck after serving a three-month suspension following a failed drug test where Sanchez tested positive for the agents found in marijuana.[2]
At the weigh-in for UFC 69, Sanchez shoved Koscheck while they stared each other down.
Sanchez ended up losing by decision to Josh Koscheck at UFC 69, ending his undefeated run, in a fight that was virtually all stand up. Predicted to be one of the best fights of 2007, the bout was slow paced, with very few exchanges. Going into the final moments of the third round, Sanchez was expected to advance in aggression in order to attempt a win, but instead he remained timid, throwing very short, under powered jabs. Koscheck managed to keep Sanchez at bay with superior hand speed and footwork until the bout timed out, to take the win on all three judges' cards.
Several weeks after the fight, Dana White announced that Sanchez was sick on the eve of the fight, and almost had to retire when a test came back indicating he had Hepatitis C.[3] Doctors eventually concluded the test results were not correct, but could not diagnose his sickness, so the fight went ahead as planned. The day after the fight Sanchez had a hole in his thigh the "size of a coffee cup" and was diagnosed as a staph infection.
In his most recent bout, Sanchez defeated David Bielkheden via submission due to strikes at 4:43 of round 1 at UFC 82.
[edit] Personal life
Diego was engaged to former UFC ring girl Ali Sonoma but the pair are now separated and have gone their separate ways due to their career paths.[4] [5] He also has a son.[6] Diego is also a born-again Christian.
[edit] MMA record
As of March 2008, Sanchez has compiled a professional record of 18 wins, 2 losses, and 0 Draws. His current UFC record is 7-2.[7]
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 20 matches | 18 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 5 | 0 |
| By submission | 9 | 0 |
| By decision | 4 | 2 |
[edit] References
- ^ This record does not include his exhibition fights on The Ultimate Fighter. His UFC record includes these two fights, and thus lists his record as 19-1, which is incorrect.
- ^ Arias, Carlos (2007-03-22). Andrade finally gets title shot. The Orange County Register. Retrieved on 2007-07-07.
- ^ Davidson, Neil (May 24, 2007). UFC boss says Diego Sanchez almost retired on eve of UFC 69 in Houston. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved on 2007-07-07.
- ^ His fiance, Ali Sonoma, who is one of the UFC's Octagon Girls, also wanted to move to San Diego.
- ^ AH: Are you and Diego still together? AS: No, we decided to call it quits based on our careers. I will be away for months…we are still best friends, though. We talk everyday. I do and always will love him. He is on a different level of any guy I have ever met.
- ^ Jackson reported the split was due to personal reasons with Diego wanting to be closer to his son
- ^ Officil website - biography (2007). Retrieved on 2007-07-07.
[edit] External links
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