Nate Diaz submits Ferguson at UFC 279

Mixed martial arts fan-favorite Nate Diaz scored a huge win in the final bout of his UFC contract following a submission over former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson in the main event of UFC 279 this Sunday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Ferguson started the contest with a variety of strikes in round one that had his chin bleeding after Diaz checked one of his leg kicks. Diaz was patient as he slowly started to close the distance, landing clean punches that caught Ferguson's attention.

Ferguson found more success in round two but bled from a cut on the top of his right eye after getting hit by Diaz. The cut visually bothered Ferguson, making him backpedal in the round while Diaz pressed forward throwing combinations on top.

Ferguson chopped Diaz's legs which hurt the latter in round three. A series of punches from Diaz stunned Ferguson in the stanza that had the latter retreat a few times. A clean left straight from Diaz landed clean on top in round 4 then he proceeded to attack the body.

Hurt and unable to strike back, Ferguson shot for a takedown only to get his neck caught. Once on the mat, Diaz wrapped his arm around Ferguson's neck to force a tap at the 2:54 mark of round 4.

Shortly after the fight, Diaz announced that he will step away from the UFC in the meantime. He improved his record to 22-13 while Ferguson suffered his fifth consecutive defeat as he fell to 26-8.

—JMB, GMA News