5 reasons why the UFC is better with Nick and Nate Diaz in it
The Diaz brothers, Nick and Nate Diaz are among the most polarising stars in UFC history, with seemingly as many fans disliking them as worshipping them. Nick and Nate Diaz are seen as two of the UFC’s biggest stars, but is the promotion better or worse for their presence? It’s actually a fair question.
However, for as much as the Diaz brothers tend to annoy some parts of the UFC fanbase, it’s hard to argue the idea that the UFC would be better off without them.
On that note, here are five reasons why the UFC is better with the Diaz brothers in it.
#5 Nick and Nate Diaz are massive drawing cards for the UFC
From the UFC’s point of view, the biggest reason why they love to keep Nick and Nate Diaz around is that they’re both massive pay-per-view drawing cards.
The UFC has always relied on creating big stars to drive their business, and naturally, creating stars is somewhat of a cyclical business, with fighters rising to fame and then invariably falling once they begin to lose their lustre.
Major draws of the past like Brock Lesnar and Ronda Rousey are now long gone, while newer stars like Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman are beginning to rise in fame.
However, only a handful of fighters have proven to be draws whether they win or lose. Conor McGregor is obviously the greatest example, but the same can also be said for Nick and Nate Diaz.
Nate Diaz’s drawing power obviously increased dramatically when his two fights with McGregor in 2016 both drew over a million buys on pay-per-view.
He has only fought three times since then, but his presence clearly increased interest in the shows he starred in – even if buyrates for them have not been disclosed.
Nick Diaz, meanwhile, returned to the UFC with much fanfare in 2011. All four of his fights since returning were pay-per-view main events, and he drew more than a million buys alongside Georges St. Pierre at UFC 158.
His upcoming return fight against Robbie Lawler is not a main event. But it has been positioned like one, as it’s been booked for five rounds – showing that the UFC recognise Nick Diaz’s worth.
Essentially, in an era of few true stars, the UFC needs all the drawing power they can find – and the Diaz brothers draw.