Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez is a mixed martial arts fighter. He has a background of wrestling and Gaidojutsu. The technique of Gaidojutsu is a system of submission wrestling. It was promoted by Diego Sanchez’s trainer Greg Jackson. Diego Sanchez currently competes as a Welterweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Diego Sanchez was born on December 31, 1981. He was raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. At the tender age of 9 years, Diego Sanchez began to take karate lessons. He started wrestling in 6th grade. Years of martial arts training helped Diego to become a successful wrestler at Del Norde High School. It also proved helpful on the High School gridiron, when Diego Sanchez was a linebacker. In 2000, Diego Sanchez won the state wrestling championship in the 152 lb weight class.
A few years after graduating from High School, Diego Sanchez began practicing for mixed martial arts at Jackson’s Gaidojutsu, under the guidance of Greg Jackson.
In 2002, Diego Sanchez made his debut appearance in MMA Championships. Initially, he competed in the smaller shows, mostly the ‘King of the Cage’ promotion. He was chosen as a participant on the first season of the reality show, The Ultimate Fighter. This marked Diego Sanchez’s UFC debut. He earned a contract with the UFC after defeating Kenny Florian. This victory made Diego Sanchez the Middleweight Champion for the first season of UFC. Following this achievement, Diego Sanchez came under the Welterweight category and defeated Brian Gassaway, Nick Diaz, John Alessio, Karo Parisyan, and Joe Riggs.
Diego Sanchez scored the first knockout of his career by defeating Joe Riggs on December 13, 2006 at UFC Fight Night 7. This was his last fight before his first defeat to Josh Koscheck.
After serving a 3 month suspension, following a failed drug testing, Diego Sanchez was given the grant to fight against Josh Koscheck. Unfortunately, Diego Sanchez ended his undefeated run when he lost by decision to Josh Koscheck at UFC 69. |
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