Former UFC fighter Nate Diaz says he was acting in self defense after he was caught on video choking TikTok star Rodney Petersen unconscious and subsequently issued an arrest warrant by New Orleans police for second-degree battery. The incident took place last weekend after a boxing event outside a bar on Bourbon Street, where Diaz was approached by a man who has since been identified as Petersen, a Logan Paul lookalike. Petersen is seen with both hands up in a non-combative fashion as he talks to Diaz. In the video, Diaz appears to grab Petersen, grabbing him in what is described as a guillotine choke, then drops him to the ground. New Orleans police subsequently issued an arrest warrant and Petersen called for revenge in a video shortly afterwards. Now, Diaz says he was acting in self-defense, with his reps claiming he was “aggressively pursued.” “Nate’s attorney Walter Becker can confirm that Nate has received word of the arrest warrant and Becker has been in contact with court authorities in New Orleans,” Diaz’s representative Zach Rosenfield told MMA Fighting. “Nate’s attorney looks forward to presenting all of the facts about this incident to the District Attorney which clearly demonstrate that a trained fighter named Rodney Petersen aggressively pursued Nate with the intention of engaging him and once doing so, Nate acted entirely in self-defense. No further comment will be made at this time.”
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