Can KJ Noons Strike Gold Twice Against Nick Diaz?
Strikeforce Welterweight champion Nick Diaz (22-7-0-1, 3-0 SF) will step into the cage for his first title defense against K.J. Noons (9-1, 2-0 SF) in a rematch of their November 2007 encounter that crowned Noons the EliteXC 160lb champion. The bout ended controversially with a doctor’s stoppage when Diaz sustained massive cuts around his eyes. Noons celebrated his win while Diaz protested the stoppage. In retrospect however, many fans believed Diaz’s poor gameplan of standing with a solid boxer in Noons was the reason he lost. Fast forward almost three years, things have changed considerably. EliteXC folded, and KJ Noons took a lengthy hiatus from the sport to focus on a boxing career. Diaz went on to punch out or submit any and all comers, eventually winning the vacant Strikeforce welterweight crown after crushing Lithuanian striker Marius Zaromskis at Strikeforce: Miami in January. Noons returned to mixed martial arts shortly after Diaz’s win, notching himself wins over Andre “Dida”
