Report: Nate Diaz to return at UFC 230 vs Dustin Poirier
The lightweight division just got another mega shock. According to Lance Pugmire of the LA Times, Nate Diaz will return to the Octagon and face top contender Dustin Poirier at UFC 230 at Madison Square Garden on November 3, 2018. The fight between Diaz and Poirier is expected to serve as the co-main event for UFC 230 and is likely to be announced at the UFC’s press conference on Friday.
Diaz-Poirier will be fought at lightweight, 155, and serve as co-main event on MSG card that will include @LukeRockhold @chrisweidman
— Lance Pugmire (@pugboxing) August 3, 2018
The last time Diaz fought was back at UFC 202 in August of 2016, in a second matchup against Conor McGregor. After defeating McGregor by submission at UFC 196, Diaz fell short at 202, losing by way of majority decision. In his career, Diaz was the winner of The Ultimate Fighter Season 5 and has notable wins over McGregor, Donald Cerrone, and Michael Johnson while holding a 14-9 record in his UFC career. Diaz is also considered one of the most popular fighters in the UFC and saw a huge rise in fame after he defeated McGregor at 196.
This will be Diaz’s first fight at lightweight since he defeated Michael Johnson back in December of 2015.
While Dustin Poirier had recently said he wouldn’t take any other fight except a lightweight title fight, a fight against Nate Diaz will not only likely be a big money fight for both, but could very well be a title eliminator as well. Poirier is coming off a second-round TKO of former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez at UFC on FOX 30.
After his most recent victory over Alvarez, Poirier found himself at the top of the lightweight division behind McGregor and current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov who are likely to fight at each other by the end of the year.
There has been no announcement for the main event at UFC 230 but there are several scheduled fights rumored for the card.
Other fights scheduled for UFC 230:
Chris Weidman vs Luke Rockhold
Paulo Costa vs Yoel Romero
Jacare Souza vs David Branch
