Superstar mixed martial artist Nate Diaz, who hasn’t competed in the cage since a hugely lucrative bout with Conor McGregor in 2016, is reportedly set to face Dustin Poirier at the UFC’s November return to Madison Square Garden.
Diaz, who went 1-1 in his two-fight series with Conor McGregor, has been reluctant to return to the UFC since his decision loss to the Irishman at UFC 202 - a bout which earned him a career-high disclosed purse of $2 million.
The news of his return was first reported by Lance Pugmire of the LA Times.
The Stockton, California, native was understood to be chasing a third bout with McGregor, but with the Irishman set to face Khabib Nurmagomedov in October, that leaves Diaz open to a new opponent.
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Enter Dustin Poirier. The American fighter stopped former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez last weekend in Canada in a performance which ignited title talk of his own.
A win for Diaz against a surging contender like Poirier would place him in pole position to face the winner of Nurmagomedov and McGregor - though a third bout against McGregor would be, by a large margin, the more potentially lucrative for both Diaz and McGregor.
The bout between Diaz and Poirier is expected to serve as the co-main event for UFC 230, the organization’s third annual November event inside the world’s most famous fighting arena, Madison Square Garden.
It is expected that the fight will be officially confirmed at a Friday press conference in California.