Report: Diego Sanchez Has Left Team Jackson

“The Ultimate Fighter 1” middleweight winner and current top-10 UFC welterweight Diego Sanchez has cut ties with Greg Jackson’s camp in New Mexico and is relocating to California.

That’s the word from a report in yesterday’s edition of The Albuquerque Tribune.


If true, the move would be another setback for Team Jackson. By the end of 2006, the camp was among the most successful in mixed-martial arts.

However, the team has since suffered losses by Sanchez (vs. Josh Koscheck at UFC 69), Joey Villasenor (vs. Murilo Ruo at Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Baroni), Keith Jardine (vs. Houston Alexander at UFC 71) and Nate Marquardt (vs. Anderson Silva at UFC 73). Additionally, Rashad Evans was unable to secure a win at UFC 73 and instead fought Tito Ortiz to a disappointing draw.

There’s no word on where Sanchez will continue training. On Sept. 22, he’ll face American Kickboxing Acamademy’s Jon Fitch, who owns a 14-2 record (and perfect 6-0 mark in the UFC), at UFC 76 in Las Vegas.

The winner will gain ground in the UFC’s stacked welterweight division, but any possibility of a title shot is a long way off. Current champ Matt Serra will face Matt Hughes meet at a Dec. 29 pay-per-view show, and the winner of UFC 74’s main-card bout between Koscheck and Georges St. Pierre has already been guaranteed a title shot by UFC president Dana White.

The earliest anyone else could fight for the title is likely mid-2008.

Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez had parted ways with the Albuquerque, New Mexico, training camp and its founder, Greg Jackson. This morning we were able to confirm the departure with Jackson himself:

“Diego is no longer a part of our camp. He left on very good terms. He needs to go to California and reconnect with his family. Right now it’s probably the best thing for him. I wish him the very best of luck in the future.”