Nate Diaz might return to UFC for Conor McGregor trilogy, says his manager
Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor is one of the biggest and most successful rivalries in UFC history. However, the two foes just might not be finished with each other yet.
Diaz, who is officially a free agent since fighting out his UFC contract, has plenty of options as it pertains to his combat sports career.
The former TUF winner could choose to evaluate different offers from MMA promotions like Bellator, RIZIN, and the UFC, or he could go the boxing route and pursue fights with the likes of Jake Paul, or even Floyd Mayweather.
While speaking with MMA Junkie, Diaz's manager revealed that a trilogy with 'The Notorious' is a possibility:
"Nate (Diaz) is going to be looking at the biggest fights possible. He has stated that completing the trilogy with Conor McGregor is something that interests him, and that has not changed."
The Stockton native, if he decides to come back to the UFC, will be negotiating from a position of power. He won the final fight on his UFC contract in impressive fashion as he submitted former interim lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson, at UFC 279.
Despite testing free agency, Diaz mentioned that he intends on returning to the UFC during his post-fight interview:
"I wanna get out the UFC for a minute and show all these other fighters how to own up another sport. Then I'm gonna be right back here to get a motherf***ng UFC title."
McGregor has revealed that he will be re-entering the USADA testing pool in February and will then begin negotiating his return fight with UFC management. If he feels that the options aren't appealing, he could possibly pressure the promotion to do what they can in order to re-sign Diaz for the trilogy fight.
Check out the full post-fight interview:
Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz have wins against each other
#OnThisDay in 2016, @TheNotoriousMMA & @NateDiaz209 went at it during the UFC 196 press conference 🎤 https://t.co/3nTAfsxErI
Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz's rivalry began in 2016 when 'The Notorious' was the reigning UFC featherweight champion.
The Irishman was scheduled to challenge then-lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos. However, an injury forced dos Anjos to withdraw from the card, and the former TUF winner, Diaz, stepped in on short notice.
The bout was contested at 170lbs and saw Diaz submit 'Mystic Mac' via rear-naked choke at 4:12 of the second round in the main event at UFC 196. The Irishman was motivated to come back stronger and decided to pursue a rematch against the Stockton native with a full training camp.
The rematch took place five months later at UFC 202, and this time, McGregor got his hand raised after a majority decision against his rival in a very close fight.