EXCLUSIVE | Ozzy Diaz Reflects on His MMA Journey Ahead of UFC Debut

UFC newcomer Ozzy Diaz has looked back on his MMA career so far as he prepares to face Mingyang Zhang at UFC Macau

The pair are set to open up Saturday’s main card in what will be a long-awaited debut for Diaz.

The 33-year-old is over ten years into his MMA career and finally gets his shot at the big time this weekend, having been a champion on the regional scene.

His amateur career began in Los Angeles, California back in 2013 where he had a multitude of fights under the ‘University of MMA’ promotion, including a first-round submission loss to former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Dominick Reyes.

He ended his amateur career in 2014 with a record of 5-2, and entered the professional ranks a year later. He went on to fight with King of the Cage, Bellator, and LFA (where he won the middleweight title). This earned him an opportunity on the 2022 iteration of Dana White’s Contender Series, suffering a loss to Joe Pyfer.

In an exclusive interview with Shady Beshai from Combat Sports UK, the Kings MMA fighter claimed that this loss was the best thing that happened to him.

He said: “Losing to Joe Pyfer was probably the best thing that could’ve happened to me.

“At that moment, it didn’t seem like it – I thought ‘my shot is done, that’s it’.

“I had to take a step back and look at my life in general from the outside, and kind of just go through the motions of life.

“I stopped training and had a couple injuries, but I felt like I needed to make changes outside of fighting to have the mentality I have now.

“I’m just having fun now, I felt like I needed to mature as a fighter, as a person, as a man and I feel like I’m there.”

Diaz Discusses the Chances of Seeing a KO at UFC Macau

Ozzy Diaz is a born finisher. Across the span of his career, both amateur and professional, he is yet to hear the judges scorecards.

With nine finishes from nine, his matchup with Zhang promises to be an exciting one. Despite being prepared to go the distance, he says that most of the time, either him or his opponent will go to sleep.

He said: “I’m always prepared, every fight I’m prepared to go the distance.

“Whether it’s 15 or 25 minutes, I’m always ready.

“If the knockout happens, if it presents itself then I’m gonna pull the trigger.

“I think that’s what makes me exciting, and why people tune in a lot – because you never know.

“It’s gonna be either me or him, and I’m aware of that. Percentage wise, it’s mostly them.”