Nate Diaz is confident he will be able to secure a third fight with Conor McGregor despite leaving the UFC this weekend.
The California native has been under contract with MMA's top promotion for over 15 years and leave as one of their most recognisable stars. He was always a hardcore fan favourite and cemented himself as a hero with casuals when he submitted McGregor in a short-notice fight in 2016.
Since that star-making win, however, he has struggled to get on the same page as the promotion, and as a result has spent years at a time out of action and fought just four times since. He lost their rematch at UFC 202 that same summer before being forced out for over three years, going into this weekend's fight with a 1-3 record since beating McGregor.
Ever since that second meeting, which ended with McGregor taking a majority decision, fans have been clamouring for the pair to get back in the octagon again. But it hasn't arisen as an opportunity as yet, and Diaz now claims that the timing just isn't right currently.
“The timing’s not on right now,” Diaz told Inside Fighting. “We’ll worry about that later. It’s for sure going to happen at some point. … Yeah, at some point. He needs to get back on what he’s got to do, whatever that is. It’s like, when we match up, we’re going to match up. But we ain’t going nowhere.”
First, McGregor will have to return to full health and book his comeback fight which he has pencilled in for early next year. The Irishman broke his leg last year in his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier and hasn't returned since, despite posting countless training videos indicating a return is near.
Who do you think would win a trilogy fight between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
His coaches John Kavanagh and Owen Roddy have indicated they want Diaz as his comeback bout, but that seems highly unlikely as he heads out on his own. The American could return in future for the right fight, but will instead focus on his own promotional company and taking other offers.
"That would be a way to end it," Kavanagh told Mirror Fighting when asked about Diaz's deal coming to a close back in December. "I think Conor only has one or two left as well. Look, the Nate trilogy is like Batman vs Joker, they're going to face each other forever.
"They're just perfectly made opponents, it's great fun the build-up and there's a respect, I won't say it's begrudging. They snipe at each other, but there's a bit of a tip of the hat to each other as well because they're both warriors and great fighters. It would be lovely to see."
