After downplaying beef, Diaz's shove of Cerrone reignites tempers at UFC 141 presser

Sitting at the podium for the UFC 141 pre-fight press conference, Nate Diaz insisted any drama between Donald Cerrone and him was manufactured.

"I think it was just made a little more than what it was," he said of a previous run-in with Cerrone that's turned UFC 141's co-main event into a mini-soap opera.

Then, Diaz created some real drama. Nose-to-nose for photographers, Diaz flipped off Cerrone's cowboy hat and shoved him. Cerrone gritted his teeth as the two were separated, but he didn't escalate things.

Diaz (14-7 MMA, 9-5 UFC) vs. Cerrone (17-3 MMA 4-0 UFC) is the co-main event of UFC 141, which takes place Friday at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and airs live on pay-per-view.

Love it or hate it, the already-intriguing fight has been stoked by tough-guy theatrics. Cerrone alleges Diaz slapped away a handshake and called him a racial epithet when the two crossed paths at an open workout for UFC 137. Cerrone was at the event to fight Dennis Siver while Diaz was there to support his older (and equally fiery) brother Nick Diaz, who headlined the event opposite B.J. Penn.

"I just walked the other way, and I came here to fight," Diaz countered on Cerrone's accusation. "I trained hard for this fight, so that's what I'm here to do."

UFC president Dana White is unsure of the stakes of the fight, other than that it promises to be one of the year's most exciting.

"We've got to see what happens," he said. "They're definitely up there. They both have some big wins. [Diaz] looked incredibly impressive against Gomi, and [Cerrone has] been on a tear, man. He's been stopping everybody."

After trying to figure out why his opponent would react in the way he did back then, Cerrone is over with trying to dissect his opponent's motivations.

"If that's his way of approaching it – 'I don't want to be friends with anybody' – if that's what he does to be ready for a fight ... hey, hate me, love me – I don't care," he said. "We're fighting."

Weighing their respective records, Cerrone stands to lose an impressive win streak he's built since migrating from the now-defunct WEC. Most recently, he dispatched Siver at UFC 137, which was his fourth consecutive victory inside the octagon.

Diaz temporarily hit the 155-pound division's glass ceiling in a loss to two-time title challenger Gray Mayard almost two years ago. Maynard, however, is now fighting his way back into contention after a recent loss to Frankie Edgar, and a host of other lightweight contenders have fallen short in their rise. A win over Cerrone might bridge the gap to a top-five opponent after a two-fight skid brought to an end his experiment in the welterweight class this year.

That, combined with their aggressive fighting styles, should be enough to sell Cerrone vs. Diaz.

But there is more, and after the shove, there is no confusing how the two feel about each other.

"Will I shake his hand after the fight?" Cerrone said. "Probably not."