Former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz said he plans on returning to fighting next year, and he’s eyeing former UFC middleweight king Israel Adesanya.
Diaz has only competed once since 2015. He battled ex-UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler in September 2021 at UFC 266 and although Diaz had moments in the fight, he eventually lost via third-round TKO after “Ruthless” dropped him with a strike.
But, according to Diaz, that won’t be the last time fight fans see him compete. “You can see me back on top in 2023, I’m making a comeback,” Diaz said while at the Crazy Horse 3 Gentlemen’s Club in Las Vegas last weekend via MMA Mania. “I’m going to be quicker than ever, stronger than ever, better than ever — I’m just gonna be a whole new me.”
And who does Diaz want to fight? Well, he’s looking to summit the middleweight mountain, whether that be fighting newly crowned 185-pound champion Alex Pereira or Adesanya, the longtime champ who Pereira took the belt from in November at UFC 281.
“Whoever is on top at the time [I want], preferably Israel Adesanya, if he gets his title back,” Diaz said per the outlet.
Diaz’s Coach Cesar Gracie Shared Earlier This Year That Diaz Would Fight in 2022
Diaz’s coach Cesar Gracie made headlines back in April when he wrote via Instagram that fans could expect to see Diaz compete in 2022. “Look for @nickdiaz209 to fight by the end of the year,” Gracie wrote, sharing a photo of Diaz with the Strikeforce title.
Prior to the Lawler match, Diaz last competed in January 2015 when he met former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva inside the Octagon. In what turned out to be a bizarre fight — which included Diaz voluntarily laying down on the canvas — Diaz ultimately lost the contest by unanimous decision.
However, the fight was later overturned to a no-contest after Silva tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs and Diaz failed for marijuana.
Diaz is one of the most notable names in mixed martial arts. Long before his brother Nate Diaz became a household name, Nick was running the show in Strikeforce where he held the 170-pound belt from 2010 until the UFC absorbed the promotion in 2011.
All in all, Diaz has a professional mixed martial arts record of 26-10 with two no-contests. Thirteen of his victories have come via KO/TKO and eight by submission. He boasts victories over the likes of former UFC welterweight and lightweight champion BJ Penn, English star Paul Daley and Lawler.
Diaz vied for the UFC 170-pound belt in March 2013 at UFC 158 against then-champion Georges St-Pierre. “GSP” won the affair by unanimous decision.
Diaz Reflected on Loss to Lawler, Said He ‘Had It Coming’
After Lawler earned the win in September 2021, Diaz spoke with UFC color commentator Daniel Cormier inside the cage. And Diaz told the former two-division UFC champion that he had the loss coming, saying that he didn’t “know how this fight got set up.”
“I had a long time off and I knew I had it coming,” Diaz said. “I don’t know how this fight got set up. I had to switch up my whole management and set up, the way the fight got set up. It was just a bum rap. But, no excuses. I had it coming.”
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Nick Diaz Promises Return & Calls Out Former UFC Champion