Exactly 19 years ago, Nick Diaz fought Joe Riggs.
Twice in one night.
The infamous story of their UFC 57 showdown on Feb. 4, 2006, and, particularly, the ensuing brawl in the emergency room has been chronicled before, but the latest episode of the new docuseries “Dark Side of the Cage” takes it to another level with the participation of both fighters — Diaz included.
“[Diaz] talked about the fight in the hospital with Joe Riggs, and he speaks about it in person,” series executive producer Tim Healy recently told The Post, “and [we] actually got Joe Riggs to speak about it. I think people are going to get a kick out of that story. I think a lot of people probably will.”
Revisiting that pivotal, impromptu slide of Diaz’s career, which prompted his UFC release. Growing his cult-favorite status from outside the octagon and eventually returning a bigger star than ever, is one of many intriguing recollections the squirrelly Diaz spoke about during a rare sitdown for the episode “Nick Diaz vs. the World” (10 p.m. Wednesday, Vice TV).
Securing Diaz’s cooperation with the series wasn’t easy — which should surprise exactly nobody familiar with him.
“We had no idea he would sit [for an interview]. We committed to the episode fully expecting him to say no,” Healy said. “We figured we’d never hear back. Nick was technically an active fighter at the time, and that’s Nick being Nick. I think most fighters would probably get their request, if they’re on the active roster, and they would probably think it’s probably not a great thing for me to do.
“Nick being Nick, he decided that it was something that he wanted to do, and after six months of chasing him, he showed up in Houston, Texas, and sat down for almost three hours.”
Technically, Diaz remains an active member of the UFC roster.
Last year, Diaz twice had been scheduled to compete against Vicente Luque, but the matchup was scuttled each time.
Since then, concerning reports surrounding Diaz’s health and wellness had circulated, with Diaz himself as well as friends such as Jake Shields offering more positive updates last month.
Drug use, particularly marijuana, goes hand-in-hand with the story of both Diaz and younger brother Nate — whose fame likely has eclipsed his own thanks to his pair of famed fights with Conor McGregor and a more recent boxing match against Jake Paul.
Testing positive for pot in Nevada in 2015 notoriously netted Nick Diaz a five-year suspension from competition, an overly harsh ban that was later trimmed on appeal to 18 months; he would not compete again for 6 ½ years regardless.
Diaz and those who know him best, such as former coach Cesar Gracie, discuss in “DSOTC” how marijuana was used for what he viewed as a better way to deal with his attention deficit disorder than the medication he had been prescribed.
Years prior to that suspension, Diaz had a signature victory over Pride lightweight champion Takanori Gomi overturned to a no contest by his first positive test for marijuana in Nevada.
“I didn’t know there was anything against it in the rules,” Diaz says of that first punishment, which included a fine and a six-month suspension, in an exclusive clip from the episode provided to The Post. “I wasn’t looking. I wasn’t asking questions.”
Though still part of the UFC roster, Diaz has fought just once since that suspension — a Sept. 2021 loss in a rematch against former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler.
That decade-plus distance from the vast majority of his fight career, highlighted by a run as Strikeforce welterweight champ and a well-promoted but unsuccessful attempt to dethrone UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre, gives Diaz the ability to offer a level of introspection uncommon from active fighters.
In fact, Diaz is the only primary subject of the 10-episode first season of “DSOTC,” which Healy says is by design.
“Truth be told, we really focused on athletes that are retired, that have had their MMA career put into the rear-view mirror,” Healy explains, “just because there are plenty of fighters and active fighters in MMA that would make great candidates for episodes, but I just don’t think we would get the same level of introspection and honesty in the in the interview chair.”
