Hands up who thought that Nate Diaz was only coming back for one fight and one fight only.
The Stockton native hasn’t been seen inside the Octagon since dropping a majority decision to Conor McGregor at UFC 202 in August 2016. That was, of course, a rematch of their first welterweight clash at UFC 196. Diaz won that fight after stepping in as a short notice replacement for then-lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos. He was filmed sinking shots on a yacht in Cabo just days before the fight but managed to beat the UFC’s biggest superstar to the ground and force the tap with a second-round rear-naked choke.
Since then he was linked with returns against Georges St-Pierre and Tyron Woodley, the latter for the welterweight strap. However, neither fight came to fruition. So we assumed that the UFC would only meet his purse demands to book the blockbuster rubber match against ‘the Notorious’. A line from the sequel to the multiple-Oscar-winning Steven Seagal movie Under Siege (sound design Oscars still count!) has, as it often does, become relevant again.
“Assumption is the mother of all fuck ups.”
Back in at the deep end
In the wee hours of Friday morning, the Los Angeles Times reported that Diaz has been booked to fight Dustin Poirier at UFC 230 on November 3 at Madison Square Garden in New York. MMAjunkie subsequently confirmed the match-up with their sources. The fight is expected to be announced at a special press conference in Los Angeles on Friday night.
Diaz (19-11, 14-9 UFC) hasn’t competed at lightweight in nearly three years. The last time he fought at that weight class was against Michael Johnson in UFC on Fox 17’s Fight of the Night in December 2015.
Poirier (24-5-1NC, 16-4-1NC UFC) will be taking his fourth fight in a 12-month period to face Diaz. “The Diamond” has won three consecutive headliners by knockout against former UFC and WEC king Anthony Pettis, former WSOF champ Justin Gaethje and, most recently, former UFC and Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez.
