Getty Nate Diaz
The UFC is likely “leading the charge” in the Nate Diaz sweepstakes, fighter-turned-analyst Chael Sonnen said recently on MMA Fighting’s “The MMA Hour.”
The mixed martial arts superstar is the biggest free agent in the sport and organizations like Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship have expressed interest in signing him. Well, Sonnen spoke with host Ariel Helwani about Diaz and said he believed the UFC was the frontrunner in terms of signing Diaz.
Specifically, Sonnen pointed to the potential trilogy match with Conor McGregor as being a major piece on the chess board for the UFC trying to pull Diaz back in. But, he also mentioned two realistic possibilities for outside-the-Octagon ventures for Diaz in the form of boxing Floyd Mayweather Jr. and/or Jake Paul.
“You want to know what Nate Diaz is going to do next? Unknown,” Sonnen said. “When I tell you unknown, what I’m trying to say is all options are on the table, but that option is also to return to the UFC and to fight Conor McGregor. That’s not just gone now, and it has to be Jake Paul or Floyd Mayweather and he’s got to go start his own promotion.
“Those things are all possibilities, but a return is also on the table; in fact, I think it’s leading the charge of what’s possible for Nate Diaz.”
Sonnen Said That the Mayweather & Paul Fights Are Likely Lower Priority for Diaz
“The American Gangster” continued his take on Diaz’s free agency. And in short, he thinks returning to the UFC is more viable for Diaz.
“He would not just be coming back,” Sonnen said. “There would be a brand new and fresh conversation to be had and I think he wants to have that conversation. Yeah, I think it’s leading the way. I don’t think he’s going off to box Floyd and I don’t know how much legs there are to Jake Paul, I realize that there’s something there to pull.”
Sonnen Has ‘Enjoyed’ Diaz’s Free Agency ‘Journey’
Sonnen’s fans know that he has a particular interest in the business and promotion side of mixed martial arts. And following Diaz’s “journey’ as a free agent has been something he’s “enjoyed.”
“Following Nate Diaz is a very complicated thing,” Sonnen said. “By the way, I think he would tell me. I think if I called him and said, ‘Hey Nate, by the way, curiosity’s got me, what are you going to do?’ I’ve never done that and if you want to know why, it’s not because I couldn’t keep a secret and I’d be worried that he gave it to me. I don’t know that I want to know. I enjoy this. I really enjoy the maneuvering of Nate.
“Nate has said a number of things that I didn’t believe. I thought he was working them. Just for example, when he says he wants to fight Chimaev on [The MMA Hour] and two days later he’s signed to fight Chimaev, I didn’t believe it at the time that he said it. When he said, ‘I’m going to walk away or I’m going to do my own promotion,’ when he said, ‘I’m going to consider Floyd,’ I thought these were just things you say. When he said he turned down Conor McGregor, which just by my math of understanding his contract would bring him in $12 million. That would be a massive night for this industry. I didn’t believe it. I thought he was working, I thought he was getting attention, and they all end up being straight and I’ve frankly enjoyed the journey.”