‘The Artist’ KJ Noons has no qualms painting another masterpiece on Nick Diaz’s face
By: James Iannotti
Elite XC Lightweight Champion KJ Noons was a guest on HDNet’s “Inside MMA” yesterday, adding yet another chapter to the back and forth war of words between himself and his nemesis, Nick Diaz.
By now it’s common knowledge that there is no love lost between these two.
Noons and Diaz originally fought last November for the right to become the first-ever Elite XC lightweight champion. Noons won the match fight after a ringside doctor deemed the cuts around both of Diaz’s eyes were too severe for the fight to go on. Diaz obviously disagreed with the decision and he’s been clamoring for another shot at Noons ever since.
When asked by Kenny Rice if there was going to be a rematch, the champ said this:
“I was thinking about this earlier. Does he deserve a rematch? No. He’s not the number one contender. I want to fight other guys out there. Do people want to see the rematch? Of course. What it boils down to is, I got to take care of myself, and money talks. I think a lot of people forget what happened the first time. I think a lot of people, they want to see the rematch, but I destroyed this guy in five minutes. And I was trained to do five rounds, five minutes.”
UFC heavyweight, Justin McCully, who was also a guest on the program interjected by mentioning the scar tissue on Diaz’s face. Noons replied with this:
“A lot of people say scar tissue, but this guy’s not a professional boxer. He hasn’t had a lot of pro fights. He hasn’t taken a lot of damage to his face, so I don’t know where they come up with all this scar tissue.”
Noons then brought out a picture of Diaz’s face after their fight in November. He asked the camera to zoom in so everyone at home could get a good look at it, and said this:
“You see this face right here? Ok, this is the first time. See this guy’s face? This took five minutes. My nickname is KJ. I’m gonna do a little trash talking right now for you guys, make it a little fun. My nickname is KJ. The first show, they came up with “KO Artist.” Then they came up with “King Karl” for the last one. So, if we’re going to meet in a match again, I think I’m going to be called “The Artist” because this right here, this is a masterpiece, and I painted this. You see this? This is a masterpiece. So round two? Sure, let’s go.”
There was speculation the rematch would be on July 26, in Stockton, Calif., at “Unfinished Business,” but for whatever reason the plans for the bout fell through. Diaz will remain on the card and face Thomas “Wildman” Denny.
It’s unclear what Noons’ plans are for the immediate future. In an interview right here with MMAmania.com, he stated his intentions to go back into boxing at some point, but he also mentioned his contract with Elite XC called for him to defend his title three times this year. He’s got one out of the way with a successful defense against Yves Edwards.
The question now is … when is the next one? Time will tell.
66 Comments »
KJ better back this shit up next time. Nick sub’d Gomi and that shit should stick. It was a bad medical ruling but doctors that think pot could somehow help a fighter. Very ridiculous. They should be fighting again now, but KJ knows that Nick could easily destroy him as well.
LOL, this guy is going to bite off a little more than he can chew. A pissed off, motivated and being shit talked to Nick Diaz is a very dangerous combination. I truly hope Nick breaks his arm off and turns it into a bong! I wish they had asked him why he’s talking so much now, since he obviously wasn’t begging elite for the July fight/ And lastly, to say Nick doesn’t deserve a title shot, look at his wins (including gomi) and look at KJ’s…enough said, and to say “what scar tissue” Gomi beat on Nick for longer than 5 minutes, we all know what happened next. Next time Nick won’t play with this punk, he’ll end it quick!
Kevin: I coud not agree more. KJ is going to be another Tito champion, meaning he will constantly duck #1 contenders. KJ has no say about who the #1 contender is. The organization decides that and NICK is clearly the #1 contender,and I would bet my betus account that he will snap one of KJ’s bones!
Easy to talk shit in an interview, how about u sign on to fight Diaz, and back that BS up!
KJ “THe nancy boy” Noons!, he is a bum that never deserved a tite shot in te 1st place! What a spinless champion!
It was an exhibition.
Gomi gassed and didn’t look like he took it seriously at all.
Looked like he tried to run out and finish it right away, which he almost did in the first 5 seconds.
the olympics are exhibitions too, thats the lamest excuse I ever heard. It was a professional fight!! period!
As I put before, but it hasn’t been posted…exhibition? so are the olympics, but the athletes all try to win, and since when is a non title fight where two guys are getting paid and exhibition? I call it a professional fight! Just because Diaz can take a beating and gomi gassed doesn’t make it an exhibition! This is the worst post I’ve seen in a while!
Noons will win agian, and make nick more uglier then he already is.
Diaz is not number 1 contnder? what? im not the biggest fan of elite xc and i don’t know of many other elite xc lightweights but who is more deserving of a title shot than diaz?
If Crazy Horse can actually stay out of jail, he could definately ask for a fight. I think he knocked out Noons the first time around.
Guess whta, Crazy hoarse would knowck his bitch ass out again!
KJ Noons talks alot of shit… just like he did against Charles Bennet then got knocked the fuck out….they should put Charles Bennet against KJ NOONS…let’em get knocked out again
That was some great ‘trash talking’… Fans want to see this fight again. I with Macho Bullshit’ who is the number 1 contender?
pfff KJ Noons is a joke… the artist, lol… keep dodging diaz you puuss
The artist is funny as hell lol.
Sounds more like a douchebag trying to justify not giving Diaz a rematch even though he IS the number one contender. And screw Noons for thinking it’s even up to him who he fights. He’s the champ? Stop talking sh*t, man up, and fight Diaz.
I like his cockyness it’s funny as hell, mabey after he beats Diaz agian you’ll all show his skills some respect.
Part of the reason I don’t like Diaz is due to his shit talking. I can’t really say that I like K.J. doing the same thing. I like guys who just go out and kick ass, and then just act as if it was a day in the park. Randy and Fedor come to mind, and recently Wandy and Chuck.
I’m not a fan of trash talking either natural shadow. I know Diaz does more than his fair share, but Noons recent comments are ridiculous. I respect his skills Chase, but you shouldn’t talk smack unless you are going to give the other guy a chance to do something about it. Who else would be ranked over Diaz as #1 contender? Nobody, so let’s let them get it on so ALL of the B.S. can stop.
it gets boring after a while, like how anderson will always beat franklin, rampage with lidell, and i see it being with noons and diaz also.
If Diaz is so good, then why did he get his face mauled in the first place? mabey after NOONS beats Diaz agian you’ll show at least his skills some respect. I love his cockyness
Some fighters use their ability to take large amounts of punishment as a weapon (Leben comes to mind). Yeah, you’re beating them up, but it isn’t fazing them much and they look to pull out the submission .
We’ll ALL see when they have a rematch. i like diaz just not in this fight.
Oh yeah, and Leben is entertaining to watch but he’s nothing, Apparently he didn’t use that ability agianst Silva.
Big Nog is the king on taking punishment and still winning the fight.
Cheffdaddy: very good point. I am goingto make it real simple. No fighter deserves to win a title because of a cut. U really think Diaz woud have quit? If you win the title due to cuts, u shoudl have to give the looser an imediate re-match.
KJ “nany boy” Noons, u cant run from NIck forever, I know its going to hurt when he snaps your arm, but man up and take the fight. IMO title should only be won by tKO, submission, and decision. If you loose your title because of a cut, u should be awarded a rematch right away!
Well said john.
This KJ Noons dude is a prick.
Sorry, but if Noons destroyed Diaz he would have finished him. Instead Diaz had two bloody eyes and still seemed to control the pace of the fight by shuffling on his butt towards a retreating Noons.
If scar tissue was not an issue then why did Diaz have plastic surgery and why did Diaz say before the first fight that the only way he would lose is if he was cut.
Fact is Noons Needs to be champ to be any sort of draw. Diaz doesn’t, He has a fan base because his fights are exciting. This is why EliteXC is dragging their feet on a rematch. If Noons loses (which he will) he is much harder to promote.
Gary Shaw has no interest in putting the best fights together. Not only is Diaz the number one contender but the division itself was basically created for Diaz. After the loss Noons, a perfect poster boy, fell in to their laps and they will market him to the fullest. That said.. I was suprised by his win over Edwards, but Diaz is a different story.
Kevin M: Very intelligent post! But I have to say when ever they force KJ in the cage with Diaz, Diaz will snap one of his Bones, tapping is not going to save noons in the re match!
KJ Noons is quickly becoming my least favorite fighter. Give me a break, who is more deserving of a title shot then Diaz?
KJ will for sure beat Nick Diaz… Nick can’t take KJ down and KJ’s standup is too good for Nick to handle
The only eason that k noons won was cuz of cuts diaz wanted to go on and everyone’s body is diff. Diez just went through plastic surgery for scar tissue so it was an issue!!
Fellas, I’m not a big KJ fan, and I do like Diaz, but if you get a chance, watch their fight again. KJ out boxed Nick and for sure made look Nick look bad. (fighting that is not his face, but that too)
too many looks there
Diaz was getting beat up anyways, whether the cut was a bad call or not. I understand Noons wanting to fight other people now, but eventually this fight has to happen again.
That about sums it up.
C-war:But there is no one worth fighting in EliteXc’s division. Eddie Alvarez is busy fighting in Japan. Diaz is the only fighter worth of a title shot that they have. Noons didnt deserve a title shot in the first place and he only won by a cut.
IMO, when a title changes hands due to a cut, an immediate re match should be awarded to the former champ! Yes KJ Dominated the 1st round, but its a five round fight, Diaz is like Nogueira he always gets beat up and then comes back and wins. In my eyes, KJ is a pathetic champion unti he gives Diaz a rematch and either beats him by KO, TKO, Submission, or Decision!
diez wins the only reason that other fight was stoped was by ref and since then diaz has had to undergo plastic surgery!!!!
JK got lucky diaz dont quit even with add or adhd
I’m from Hawaii, and we usually back up whoever is/was a local. Yet I cannot stand behind KJ because of his new arrogance and attitude. He should wait a few more fights before talking soo much crap. I understand that it would be smarter for him not to take that fight so soon, so he has the opportunity to make money doing other fights and self-promotion as champ.
However, I do not think Nick Diaz deserves to be the #1 contender for one reason. He came in 14 pounds overweight at the last weigh-ins. That shows that he is irresponsible, and although I do believe he would come in at the correct weight for a title fight, him missing weight for his previous fight should have a negative consequence.
ok, why cant u stand behind KJ? it’s 2008 man, you’re allowed to say what u want, I thought that it was only in sweden that ppl got shit for saying what they think and like to say..
I can’t stand him because he hasn’t really fought top competition.. Sure Diaz and Edwards are big names fighters, but that only two people. The thing that also bugged me was having his family getting involved in his “beef” with Diaz.. That was pathetic.
Punishment, I can excuse Diaz for comming in over weight. He was clearly trying to bulk up for his title shot against Sakurai in DReams that was going tot take pace shortly after the Cobrey fight. He probably miscalculated the extra weight cut because he was trying to be heavier to fight Sakurai. Also, Diaz has fought tons of times in the top organizations and weight has never been an issue before. I can forgive him for that!
IC, IC… I would much rather see Sakurai/Diaz than Noons/Diaz 2..
Punishment: Sakurai vs. Diaz is back on, only it will be postponed to DREAM 6 that will take place in September.
What doe IC, IC mean? u agree with me?
john: Haha yeah.. It’s short for I see, I see.. I’m excited about the Uno vs. Aoki fight at DREAM 5, although I don’t see Uno being able to win that one. Aoki’s gogoplata from the top in his last fight was one of the sickest submissions I’ve ever seen..
i cant argue with that!
Aoki vs. Alvarez in the finals…guarentee it!
what amazes me is that people believe that noons actually has the final say in who he does and doesnt fight. i can guarantee you if elitexc officials told him he had to fight diaz he would do it. noons doesnt weild the kind of power to pick or choose who he fights himself.if everyone would go back and read friday night smackdown (just scroll down a little ways) CHRIS COSME? states that it wasa elite offficials who pushed this fight further back, possibly to build up even more hype for the fight. if you cant trust, mma mania, who can you trust?
diaz is a loser that earns a shot bye talking trash, his family is not made to fight..
I hope your joking.
Fabulously stupid comment. What makes you think this?
well, this is just my opinion, everytime he losses he runs away fliping off everyone and cussing and starting trouble, thats what mma does its best not to be, hes a ghetto piece of trash..
“2nd round? lets go” <–? wassup den? stop daydreaming about your nicknames and sign the contract so we can see how far the fight would go if it wasn’t a win by lucky cut? cuts are messy but aren’t any kind of real damage. not like noons rocked him at any point of the fight. mike aina brought it more against diaz. if noons is badder, he should have no problem silencing the nonbelievers like me and get a legit finish. i’m so relieved everybody’s not calling him king. lol. that would be something.
kj is far away from nicks skills , nick fought the best in buisnes and kj dindt beat nick that was a stupit cut . nick in rematch would destroy kj
After his demolition of Yves Edwards, Noons has won the right to talk some smack. Obviously, he’d better back it up, but he’s champ and he’s beat some solid fighters. He can talk all he wants.
of course he can talk all he wants but so could the spider, penn or gsp. can you imagine if those guys had the class displayed by this idiot noons? i for one thank my lucky stars everytime those three say something, cause its always (well maybe not penn) very classy. ive never seen gsp disrespect anyone in the world of mma, in my book that makes you a hell of a lot better fighter… like he needs it ha
Hopefully he learns to back up his shit talking better then he did with Krazy Horse. I was shocked at how much shit he talked to Krazy Horse, especially since he was a newcomer at the time. Talk about being a punk.
And Noons really needs to avoid going back in boxing.
I’m sorry, but you cease to be a top boxing prospect once you lose to a fighter with a losing record that was handpicked to pad your record. Honestly, I think thats the only reason he is even in MMA right now.
Diaz will own noons this time around, why becoz hell be high ! haha, ok ok bad joke
Way to much hating on Noons o well we will find out when they rematch exactly where he stands. If Noons wins again not much more to say except watch the fu-ck out.
yeAH BUT NOONS IS A BICTH DUCKING DIAZ . BECAUSE HE knows he`ll own him
Seems like there’s alot of haterism for the “CHAMP” no matter what people say, Diaz got his ass kicked the first time around. It’s funny how right after getting your ass handed to you, you start to call out that the CHAMP is scared. It really seems like Diaz the punk that he is trys to smear guys of there win because of his imbarassment of getting punched in the face so many times the ref and the docs stopped the fight.
I said it before Diaz lick your F*&cking wounds shut your mouth and take it like man would. Not a punk high school bully who got beat up by the star role of the drama play.
this is off topic but would`nt anyone want to anderson vs rampage . or anderson vs wanderlie
Yeah, that was off the topic. We appreciate that.
No the Lightheavyweight is the most stacked division in the word. It does not need Anderson Silva in it.
Plus at middleweight I want to see Anderson vs:
1) Re match with hendo (silva may win again, but Hendo will make it much more interesting nest time around)
2) Avenge his loss to Okami
3) Ameida (best ju jistu in the middeweight division)
4) Cote
5) Bisping
6) THales Leites
7) Martin Kampman
These 2 fighters are getting way too much publicity. This saga has started to become stale. They might be towards the top of the Elite XC food chain, but in the overall MMA picture they aren’t even top 10 fighters in their weight class.
Honestly, the antics have gotten to such a ridiculous level that I’m not even buying it anymore. I think they are full of shit and are just using WWF-like tactics to garner interest in their fight.
Does Character Count?
The type of behavior exhibited on TUF is outrages. If the UFC truly wishes to make to the pinnicle of the sport world, character needs to become a prioirty. When choosing the next round of fighters try to find some with out so many character flaws. Lets try and learn from the most popular sport in americaFootball. Look at all the hits football has taken in recent years. Now, when athletes attend the football combine, they are not only evauated on there skill nad strenght but also on thier character or lack of.
No one wants a blcak eye on thier sport because some so called pro can not act accordingly or acts like he belongs in a cage not fights in one.
To truly strenghten our sport, to truly be a class “A” sport, to truly be maistream, the top organization need to make character a top prority.