Nick Diaz says he “took harder punches watching” his little brother fight Leon Edwards at UFC 263 than he ever has in sparring or any fights.

Diaz will make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon on Saturday when he squares off in a rematch with Robbie Lawler at UFC 266. The pair originally collided seventeen years ago in a welterweight bout at UFC 47, with the Stockton native emerging victorious by way of second round knockout.

This time around Nick Diaz and Robbie Lawler will be throwing down at middleweight, a decision that was made earlier this week. Ahead of what many fans are dubbing ‘The Peoples Main Event’ of UFC 266, ‘The Stockton General’ sat down with ESPN‘s Brett Okamoto to discuss a number of topics.

One of subjects discussed was how Nick felt watching his younger brother Nate fight Leon Edwards at UFC 263.

“It’s just a lot to deal with. Being away for five years and coming back and seeing that. That was really something new. It really kind of knocked my block off. I took harder punches watching that than I ever did in sparring or in any fights. It’s my brother, it’s my baby brother, you know? It’s hard to watch him fight.” – Nick Diaz explained.

Despite a late surge from Nate in the fifth round, which including rocking Leon in the final moments, the British fighter went on to win a unanimous decision.

Nick Diaz (26-9 MMA), a former Strikeforce welterweight champion, last competed way back at UFC 183 in January of 2015. That evening in Las Vegas, the eldest Diaz brother lost a unanimous decision to MMA legend Anderson Silva. That fight ruling was later overturned to a no-contest, this after both Nick and ‘The Spider’ tested positive for banned substances.

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