Diego Sanchez: Retirement and Career Retrospective

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No, Diego Sanchez has not announced his retirement YET but I think many fans are calling for it; I know I am. Diego has been one of my favorite fighters to watch and I've been a fan of his since I saw his very first TUF fight. I know some fans may not have followed his career as long or as closely so I will cover it as briefly as I can with an emphasis on how good he was and how great he should have been and why it's now time to retire.

Diego has long been one of the most entertaining and unique fighters inside the ring and outside the ring dating back to when most of us first heard of Diego Sanchez and that was during the original The Ultimate Fighter. He was the yoga pacticing, zen-like fighter who just came off quirky if not flat out weird. But once Diego got in the octagon, there was no denying the young fighter's heart, tenacity, and skill. Diegowould go on to win TUF 1 over Kenny Florian.

Diego's star took off and with that, so did the notoriety of Greg Jackson has a head coach. It was really the fighter in Diego that helped bring Greg Jackson into the lightlight. At TUF 2 season finale, Diego Sanchez would put on a grappling clinic with fellow grappler, Nick Diaz. Diego was still a white belt in BJJ at the time while Nick was a purple belt. (Diego would get his blue belt two years later in 2007...coincidentally, 2007 was also the year Nick Diaz received his black belt) The bout is arguably the most exciting grappling-based fights in UFC history and still holds up today, 10 years later.

He would go on to have three more exciting fights against John Alessio, Kary Parysian, and Joe Riggs securing the Riggs victory a long right hook followed by a vicious flying knee.

At this point in Diego's career, he proved that he was as excellent fighter as he was eccentric. The personality he showed on TUF was really him and his skills continued to grow at an alarming rate. His wrestle heavy, wrestle/grapple first and strike second style was truly exciting to watch and captivated fans as his undefeated record grew to 17-0, being 6-0 in the UFC. There was a belief that it was only a matter of time before Diego would take on Matt Hughes and possibly even become the champion of the world at 170lbs although GSP would show the world at the end of 2006 that he was the next great WW champion.

This is where I want to elaborate more on the Diego Sanchez. At the beginning of 2007, Diego Sanchez was basically on top fo the world, not to mention dating the "it" ring girl at the time, Ali Sonoma as well. Diego was ranked #4 in the world by nearly all MMA publications only behind champ GSP, Matt Hughes, and BJ Penn. Look at those names, read them and let them sink in for a little bit. GSP....Matt Hughes...and BJ PENN. Diego was ranked right behind BJ Penn and was one fight away from a world title fight against GSP. Much like BJ, Diego was a true 155lber who fought at 170 because "he didn't enjoy cutting weight".

That next fight would be against Josh Koschek with the winner fighting GSP. Diego would go into the fight with a really bad, undiagnosed staph infection that was thought to have been hepatitis C which almost got the bout cancelled. Diego would fight an uneventful fight and lose to Koschek marking the first blemish in his career and two days later, would end up in a hospital with a hole the size of a small teacup in his knee.

This was really the changing point in Diego's career. He just had his first loss and made the decision to leave Jackson's camp as well. At that point, Diego was still a grappler first but after the Riggs KO, Diego made it known that he fell in love with the KO and wanted to evolve into a striker and believe he could. So Diego not only left Jackson behind (although it could be argued the other way around), he also left his bread and butter behind in sights of being a striking/KO machine.

From here on out, Diego would go on to have the same exciting matches but he was know a striker first and grappled only when necessary. It was clear to most that Diego was not a natural strike Diego continued on this path going 5-1 in his next 6 fights after Koschek before meeting BJ Penn for the 155lb title. Right before this was Diego's frenetic brawl against Clay Guida which cemented, in Diego's mind, his Mexican fighting warrior spirit. When he stated this, I knew there was no going back and any chances of Diego Sanchez going back to being a top heavy, wrestler first fighter was gone and likely was his chances of every becoming a champion. Diego would go on to lose to BJ Penn via TKO for the first time in his career and continued this trend of chasing KOs while losing every other fight, statistically.

After the Penn fight, where Diego had gone 21-3, he would lose 7 of his next 13 fights with his latest to Raging Al. At this point, Diego has lost 8 of his last 14 fights, losing three by T/KO and has suffered far too many strikes to the head over those past 14 fights. He has taken an insane amount of damage and it's in his best interest to retire now for the chances of him being a top 5 fighter, let alone a contender, is long gone. His saving grace was his iron chin which, with every fighter, goes away with age. A full on head kick from BJ couldn't KO Sanchez but it's no longer true.

As I write this and as other read this, I can't help but think of the what ifs, the what could have been, especially had he stayed with Jackson, if he never left, if he kept his grapple heavy, grapple first style and did not fall in love with the KO or the "Mexican warrior spirit". As noted above, at one point, Diego was ranked 4th in the UFC just behind GSP, Hughes, and Penn.

It's absurd to think but it's true; Diego Sanchez has achieved so much yet when he retires, he will have underachieved due to the change in his style. With that said, whether it was his early grappling first days or his latter swing for the fences wars, Diego will leave the UFC the same way he came in; arguably the most intense, unique, quirky and weird fighter we've ever seen.
 
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I like Diego but I'm not reading all that.
 
Too long a post mate to read it all whilst having a shit at work. BUT I think his chin is clearly not what it used to be....and seeing as that was one of his strong points he should hang them up. Also his speech is horrible, I really think he should avoid any more damage at this point!
 
Diego is retiring?
Seriously though. He looked horrible before the fight, and even worse during the fight. He doesn't have it any more. He wasn't the most articulate lad to begin with but you can tell that all the head trauma is making his speech even worse.
Time to put him out to pasture.
 
I never liked Diego. The funniest thing ever was when kos beat him. I can't stand watching him scream "yes" as he walks out to the cage to have the shit knocked out of him.
 
Did not read.

Diego is already going to have problems later in life from all of the head trauma. He should have retired years ago.
 
Damn was that the first chaper of his autobiography. I didn't read it but there were enough words there to fill some pages
 
That was a good read OP. Didn't bother me it was long, was nice to not read about Perry or Conor for once
 
In this day and age, it seems like everyone wants nothing more than bullet points. That's fine too and I've done that numerous times but for this particular post, I decided to get a bit more indepth especially for newer fans who didn't really follow Sanchez
 
That was a good read OP. Didn't bother me it was long, was nice to not read about Perry or Conor for once
I knew few would read it but I do think it's a quality post that highlights not only Diego's career but there are little nuggets in there about his rise, the turning point in his career and everything up to this point while making it as brief as possible. Many don't know that Diego was once a legit title contender, ranked only behind GSP, Matt Hughes, and BJ Penn. He was the original star of Jackson MMA, before Winklejohn joined. Had he kept his original style, he would have still been just as exciting but likely wouldn't have taken as much damage and his career arc wouldn't have flatlinned in 2009
 
I'll like Diego better once he retires. He's got a very respectable legacy, but currently he just isn't a very good fighter from what I see.

No one can question the man's heart.
 
I knew few would read it but I do think it's a quality post that highlights not only Diego's career but there are little nuggets in there about his rise, the turning point in his career and everything up to this point while making it as brief as possible. Many don't know that Diego was once a legit title contender, ranked only behind GSP, Matt Hughes, and BJ Penn. He was the original star of Jackson MMA, before Winklejohn joined. Had he kept his original style, he would have still been just as exciting but likely wouldn't have taken as much damage and his career arc wouldn't have flatlinned in 2009

Yeah a lot of the newer fans will just know of him as that guy who just runs into punches. On tuf, he said something like "i'm gonna go out there and do what i always do - get you down, pound on you and choke you out" and i think he beat 3 guys in a row by rear naked choke.

I like a good striker but i love watching guys aggressively look for submissions.

It's a shame really as he was so talented back then.
 
I have always found Sanchez annoying but he has been in some fun fights and I will give him credit for being genuine. His act is made sufferable by the fact that it is not really an act. Not a particularly smart fighter but it would be difficult to find too many fighters with bigger hearts.

His fight against Karo is one of my all time favorites. Karo's MMA judo was a sight to behold. He must have put Sanchez on his head at least 3-4 times that fight. Back and forth action. Frenetic pace. Amazing transitions. As I remember it, the fight was likely tied going into the 3rd round. The 3rd round was a scrap and then at one point, you could just see Karo concede. Diego was just putting too much pace on him & Karo broke just that little bit. Sanchez won the last couple of minutes of the round and with it the fight. Great heart and great cardio.

I feel like his title window closed earlier than most people understood. There as no way that he was beating GSP at 170 and his run at 155 was over-rated IMO. He was probably unlucky that there was not a 162lb weight class.

We all know that fighting is a dangerous profession. Sanchez was never graceful but he did strike me as unusually stiff in his last few fights. I really hope that we will not look back and see that as a symptom of serious neurological damage.
 
Yeah a lot of the newer fans will just know of him as that guy who just runs into punches. On tuf, he said something like "i'm gonna go out there and do what i always do - get you down, pound on you and choke you out" and i think he beat 3 guys in a row by rear naked choke.

I like a good striker but i love watching guys aggressively look for submissions.

It's a shame really as he was so talented back then.
Correct. Before he was a "go crazy and swing for the fences fighter" which I noted (due to his love for KO and his then newfound warrior spirit), Diego was a grappler who went for crazy ground and pound and even crazier submission attempts. His fight against Diaz was a spectacle of MMA grappling and I'm using spectacle in a positive light.
 
I have always found Sanchez annoying but he has been in some fun fights and I will give him credit for being genuine. His act is made sufferable by the fact that it is not really an act. Not a particularly smart fighter but it would be difficult to find too many fighters with bigger hearts.

His fight against Karo is one of my all time favorites. Karo's MMA judo was a sight to behold. He must have put Sanchez on his head at least 3-4 times that fight. Back and forth action. Frenetic pace. Amazing transitions. As I remember it, the fight was likely tied going into the 3rd round. The 3rd round was a scrap and then at one point, you could just see Karo concede. Diego was just putting too much pace on him & Karo broke just that little bit. Sanchez won the last couple of minutes of the round and with it the fight. Great heart and great cardio.

I feel like his title window closed earlier than most people understood. There as no way that he was beating GSP at 170 and his run at 155 was over-rated IMO. He was probably unlucky that there was not a 162lb weight class.

We all know that fighting is a dangerous profession. Sanchez was never graceful but he did strike me as unusually stiff in his last few fights. I really hope that we will not look back and see that as a symptom of serious neurological damage.
Many of the modern day fans who like nothing more than two guys throwing punches don't realize that Diego had the same style but in grappling instead. His transitions, frenetic pace, and submission attempts were absurd. The Diego/Karo fight was action packed just as was the Diego/Nick Diaz fight

Wow, you've really got a thing for him.

Not even close. I enjoyed him as a fighter but nothing more. I'm a huge MMA fan and always have been. I just felt like doing Diego some justice. My name clearly denotes who my favorite fighters are.
 
You said he had a hole in his knee from staph? I didn't know that.

I wonder if he made the decision to switch to brawling because he couldn't shoot on people like he used to due to injuries. Not that his takedowns were ever superb but it seems like hes almost completely abandoned them.

Good read though TS, thanks for posting.
 
You said he had a hole in his knee from staph? I didn't know that.

I wonder if he made the decision to switch to brawling because he couldn't shoot on people like he used to due to injuries. Not that his takedowns were ever superb but it seems like hes almost completely abandoned them.

Good read though TS, thanks for posting.
Dana White on Sanchez during a conference call 5 days after UFC 69.

"Diego was going to retire at the weigh-ins that day because a test came up that he had hepatitis C," White said in a conference call Thursday. The doctors eventually concluded he did not have hepatitis but were unable to determine what the problem was. So Sanchez fought as planned.

"That's why he was so fired up that day," White said of the weigh-in, "because he had got through this emotional roller-coaster."

Sanchez was lacklustre in a decision loss.

"The next day after the fight, he's got a hole in his thigh the size of a coffee cup; He had a staph infection and they couldn't diagnose what was wrong with him. ... Then the fight made more sense."

"It's going to be very interesting to see Diego's next fight back." White added.
 
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