The angry young man has come of age.

The enduring image of Nate Diaz before his hour-long interview with Ariel Helwani on "The MMA Hour" on Wednesday was one of a man with a scowl, often while giving the middle-finger salute.

He was angry with his opponents and has never been the guy to play nice with them before, or for that matter, after a fight. It was a business, yes, but this was all personal to Diaz, and there would be no glad-handing or smiling.

He complained that he wasn’t pushed by the UFC, but he’d routinely miss interviews or mumble his way through those he showed up for.

His interviews were filled with so many expletives and obscene gestures that Fox had to bleep him regularly and his post-fight comments were often impossible to follow.

He’s disappeared for lengthy periods. In the last 2 ½ years, he’s had absences from the Octagon of 12 ½ months and 12 months.

View photos Nate Diaz showed up for the UFC 200 press conference, despite not having a fight on the card. (AP) More

He was the anti-establishment guy who could fight, but who (seemingly) had little time or little inclination to, as UFC president Dana White would famously say about his older brother, Nick Diaz, “play the game.”

Then came Wednesday and Diaz mesmerized the MMA world with his interview. So rare is an hour-long interview with Diaz that Helwani, by far the best interviewer in the business, was literally overcome with glee on the air.

Fans, as well as many MMA journalists, were breathlessly tweeting a play-by-play of the show, in awe of Diaz’s perception, frankness and understanding of the business.

He said what he said in typical Diaz brother style, which means one filled with curse words and F-bombs. He was beloved by a certain segment of the fan base before this interview for precisely that reason: He was the guy who didn’t give a bleep, who’d defiantly say what he wanted when he wanted and who didn’t quietly and pleasantly acquiesce to the polite social norms.

If one forgets the F-bombs and expletives and focuses on what he said, he made a great deal of sense. He was insightful. He proved himself to be more than just a “dumb fighter.” He showed that he understands the business and his place in it.

Nate Diaz is a star; he’s a really, really big star, and that didn’t happen just because he submitted Conor McGregor.

Before UFC 196, when Diaz stepped in on less than two weeks’ notice and submitted McGregor with a rear naked choke in the second round, it was fair to say that McGregor and ex-women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey had lapped the field in terms of stardom among MMA fighters.

In a pack not far behind them was light heavyweight Jon Jones and then, a great distance behind, was everyone else.

No longer.

Now, when you talk about the biggest stars in the UFC, it’s no longer 1 and 1A, as in McGregor and Rousey. It’s 1, 1A, 1B and, yes, 1C.

The Diaz brothers stand at that pinnacle, as well. Nick has been out for more than a year, serving a ridiculously long suspension for marijuana usage. But after the performance his brother gave Wednesday on Helwani’s show, there is little doubt that when Nick returns after his suspension is up in August, he’ll join Nate at the top of the heap, as well.

At one point, Nate spoke of all the celebrities who love MMA and who regularly attend the UFC pay-per-view shows. They’re frequently shown on the video boards during the arena in the fight. And while White usually comps them their tickets, these stars generally don’t show up for minor league events.

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