Back in September at UFC 267, Nick Diaz (26-10, 1 NC) made his highly anticipated return. Diaz hadn’t fought since January of 2015 when he took on Anderson Silva in the middleweight division. For years, Diaz has talked about coming back, but it always fell through.
This year, Diaz got a little more serious about making a UFC return. After meeting with Dana White, the promotion started moving towards a return bout. A rematch with Robbie Lawler was put on the main card of UFC 267.
Fans were encouraged especially after seeing Diaz’s social media posts from earlier in the year where he looked to be in amazing shape. However, that same sentiment was not felt during fight week. At the last minute, the Diaz camp requested that the welterweight fight get moved to middleweight.
Lawler and the promotion agreed so the fight was moved up to 185 pounds. Diaz didn’t look in peak shape at all prior to the fight. There were a lot of questions regarding his commitment to things prior to the fight.
UFC President thinks Diaz should hang it up for good
Nick Diaz still looked good in spots at UFC 267. His boxing skills looked good and he was able to land some really good shots and combinations on Robbie Lawler. However, it was clear that this wasn’t prime Nick Diaz.
Diaz was ultimately stopped by Lawler. Afterwards, Diaz has hinted that he wanted to fight again and he’s talked about that on social media. However, that contradicts his attitude he’s always had towards fighting which is that he’s not a fan.
UFC president Dana White had an interview with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto over the weekend. Nick Diaz was a topic that was discussed and White made it clear that he doesn’t believe that Nick Diaz should fight again.
White talked about Diaz’s desire to fight and his reasons for fighting. He mentioned that Diaz fights because he needs to and not because he wants to. This is a dangerous mindset for a fighter which is why White believes he should be done.
Time will tell what the UFC ultimately decides to do with Diaz. I believe that if Diaz gets himself in prime shape that he can still be a factor in the promotion. Would he be a title contender again? Maybe not, but I believe that Diaz still has fight left in the tank.