UFC president Dana White wants to put a certain fight together, and if he gets his way, a product of it could be a missed opportunity for a Conor McGregor megafight.
Earlier this week, the UFC president spoke with TMZ about wanting to match up Nate Diaz and rising star Khamzat Chimaev.
Chimaev returned to action last weekend at UFC 267 and dominated No. 11-ranked welterweight Li Jingliang, winning by first-round submission. “Borz” has only been hit by one significant strike in four UFC bouts and is poised for a big fight next.
First, White praised Chimaev during the interview, saying the Russian is the most dominant fighter he’s seen through four fights.
“100 percent,” White said. “This guy is like nothing anybody has ever seen. When you think about it, he’s got more UFC wins than he’s been hit inside the Octagon. That’s insane.”
The UFC president’s attention was then turned to Diaz. It’s become public knowledge that Diaz only has one fight left on his UFC contract, and at this moment, it’s unclear if the MMA superstar will renegotiate a new one before his last bout.
“Yeah, we’re going to talk to Nate about it,” White said about Diaz fighting Chimaev. White said that if Diaz wants to take on Borz, he’ll make it happen.
“100 percent,” White said.
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If Diaz Doesn’t Re-Sign With the UFC, He Could Leave the Promotion Without Competing in the Trilogy Fight With McGregor
GettyNate Diaz applies a rear-naked choke to win by submission against Conor McGregor during UFC 196 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on March 5, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
If Diaz decides to fight Chimaev and doesn’t sign a new deal with the UFC prior to the fight, he’ll become a free agent. Diaz is one of the biggest names in the sport and it’s virtually guaranteed that he’ll receive offers from several combat sports promotions to fight for them.
And if Diaz moves on from the UFC, the highly anticipated trilogy fight with McGregor will be off the table.
The two competed twice in 2016, with Diaz winning the first fight by second-round submission and “Notorious” picking up a win in the second match via majority decision. It’s been over five years and the two haven’t settled the score.
And if Diaz leaves the UFC, fans will most likely have to wait a lot longer for even the possibility of the two squaring up one more time.
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McGregor Plans for ‘Greatest Comeback in Sports History’
McGregor is currently recovering from a leg break he suffered in his UFC 264 bout with Dustin Poirier in July 2021. Now months into his rehab, McGregor has made a bold promise.
Taking to Instagram last week, Notorious shared a video clip of himself hitting mits, writing: “irst time back on the pads! What a buzz! Let’s go team @mcgregorfast! Like my good friend @schwarzenegger says, ‘I’ll be back, bitches!’ Back with a vengeance! Thank you to all my doctors and my team for getting me this far so soon after surgery! There is work to be done but doing work is what I’m known for. Strap yourselves in for the greatest comeback in sports history!”
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UFC’s Planned Move Could Derail Conor McGregor Megafight