Bellator Champion AJ Mackie has called on Nate Diaz to ‘squash the beef’ after their feud before Jake Paul’s last fight.
The pair were in Florida supporting their training partners Anthony Taylor and Chris Avila, who fought on Paul’s undercard.
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And a day of media scuffles broke out between the opposing teams, which included Mackie and Diaz.
Now, the Bellator King as the ‘Head’ of his rival camps wants to settle the score inside the cage.
He told CBS Sport: “Things just escalated a little bit. Nate has one fight left. I have a lot left. But I don’t really care.
“If we have a problem, at the end of the day, we can let these [fists] solve the problem for me.
“He comes from that era. I come from seeing that era and growing up in that era. We don’t have to do all this and all that.
“If we really have problems then let’s handle them. So far it’s 1-1 with Chris Avila and Anthony.
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“I think Nate and I need to go ahead and squash the beef as head honchos. Let’s turn this on and pop it one more time and see what it is.
“I know what it is but I think he needs to see what it is and what it is so that he knows.
“I don’t care what the weight class is. 150, 170. I just run around 160, 165. Tell me 170 and see what I get back with.”
Avila, 28, defeated Paul’s former partner Taylor, 32, in eight rounds in a boxing rematch that he had initially lost in MMA.
And Mackie, 26, opened up about how a feud with Diaz, 36, had erupted the day before.
He revealed: “I don’t know how it all started with Anthony, but at the end of the day, Anthony won’t be touched in my presence. Period.
I think Nate and I need to go ahead and squash the beef as head honchos. Let us turn it on and pop it one more time and see what it is.
AJ Mackie
“You know what I mean? If I’m with one of my boys, if someone has a problem, none of my boys will be touched in my presence.
“I mean, if they catch an ant in the street and beat him up, I won’t come to find Nate. But while I’m standing there, he won’t be touched.
“I don’t care if it’s Chris Avila, Nate Diaz or anyone else. He’s not going to be touched.
“I also have my four-year-old brother with me, above all else. So you know I’m not looking for trouble until the need of the hour.
“In that case, he tried to sneak in and go to Anthony. My boy Rhys didn’t have it. He squared off. I saw someone square up with him.”
“At that point, I mean, hey, when people are square up you know what comes after square up – punches are thrown.”
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