UFC president Dana White revealed to UFC Arabia’s Farah Hannoun exactly what it’s like to work with UFC superstars Nick and Nate Diaz. White implied putting fights together for the most popular brothers in MMA history was sometimes quite challenging, but he also said the same thing about working with other popular MMA stars.
“I wouldn’t say the Diaz brothers are difficult to deal with, but they’re always interesting to deal with,” White said.
Perhaps realizing that his interviewer hadn’t really asked anything about either Diaz brother being “difficult” and that only the UFC boss had entered that term into their conversation, White pivoted to explaining what he was trying to say in a different way.
“They’re just different in their own way, and they do things their way. I’d say every fighter that we have under contract, or have had in the past have all been unique, in their own ways to deal with. Especially when they’re big stars,” White said.
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Nick Diaz Returns on September 26
Nick Diaz is getting to return to UFC action for the first time since 2015.
Diaz will face former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler in a five-round special feature bout at UFC 266 on September 26. Diaz defeated Lawler by knockout 17 years ago at UFC 47, so UFC 266 will be one of the most long-awaited rematches in history between two stars from a previous era.
Additionally, Diaz vs. Lawler 2 will be just the second time ever a UFC fight is scheduled for five rounds without being either the main event of the card or for a UFC championship.
Nate Diaz and Leon Edwards were the first UFC stars to compete in a five-round bout of that kind at UFC 263.
Edwards defeated Nate Diaz in the five-round co-main event, so Nick Diaz will hope to do better against Lawler at UFC 266.
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UFC 265: Lewis vs. Gane on August 7
White had been on summer break, but he returned to doing interviews with select media outlets this week in support of the UFC’s next pay-per-view card.
UFC 265: Lewis vs. Gane takes place Saturday, August 7 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
The main event showdown features hometown favorite Derrick Lewis in a battle against undefeated phenom Ciryl Gane to crown an interim UFC heavyweight champion.
White told Hannoun the winner of UFC 265 would face UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou next.
But the card has other solid fights, too.
In the co-main event, former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo is set to face Pedro Munhoz in a pivotal bantamweight contenders’ bout.
The original co-main of UFC 265 was supposed to feature UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight champion Amanda Nunes taking on Julianna Pena, but Nunes had to pull out of the fight due to COVID-19.
UFC 265: Lewis vs. Gane is expected to be a sellout in Houston, and the card will stream live exclusively on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
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Dana White Reacts to Nick and Nate Diaz