Former Ultimate Fighting Championship star Nate Diaz is feeling a little lighter on his wallet after his recent boxing bout with Jorge Masvidal.
As reported by TMZ Sports, Diaz filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Miami, alleging that Fanmio CEO and founder Solomon Engel is refusing to pay him the full $10 million that was agreed to before the July 6 fight. Diaz claims Engel has only paid him $1 million of that. Diaz, a Stockton, California, native, was due to receive the remaining amount from Fanmio after the fight, but it was reportedly being held in a collection account.
“Although Mr. Diaz and his representatives were skeptical that Juanmio/Engel had the funds to make the payment, they repeatedly assured him that Juanmio/Engel had the funds to pay Mr. Diaz and that payment to Mr. Diaz for his participation in boxing events would be fully guaranteed,” a copy of the complaint obtained by MMAjunkie.com reads.
According to the lawsuit, Diaz’s services, which included the fight itself as well as interviews, press conferences and social media promotion, “were worth well over $20 million.”
The document also states that Engel argued that if he paid Diaz the contract amount, the event would result in a larger-than-expected loss.
“Following the event, Diaz’s representatives were inundated with frantic phone calls, and Engel became despondent and subservient, fearing that if he paid Diaz the amount he had promised, he would lose more money from the event than he had anticipated and that his wife might divorce him as a result of his financial losses,” the lawsuit states. “Engel even went so far as to threaten Diaz that he might have to declare bankruptcy if he did not repay her debt.”
Diaz defeated Masvidal by split decision on July 6 at a sold-out Honda Center in Anaheim, California. The event was also available on pay-per-view, but there was no purchase price for the card. The bout was a rematch of their November 2019 UFC 244 bout, where Masvidal won by doctor’s stoppage in the third round to claim the promotion’s first BMF title.
“Unfortunately, Diaz had no choice but to sue Juanmio and Engel to address the apparent breach of contract and fraud and to recover the monies that Diaz is undoubtedly owed,” the lawsuit states.
