Dana White Targeting Nick Diaz vs. Demian Maia
The UFC may be in for a jiu-jitsu spectacle if Dana White gets what he wants.
As we previously noted, the UFC President recently joined the UFC Unfiltered podcast with Matt Sera and Jim Norton (quotes via FOX Sports), and touched on a potential fight for former welterweight title challenger Nick Diaz upon his return. One name White brought up was former 170-pound champ Robbie Lawler, but Diaz’s team turned that bout down:
“I offered Nick Diaz the (Robbie) Lawler fight and he turned it down. Lawler accepted the fight and Nick turned it down so I’m looking for something else for Lawler right now,” White said.
“(Diaz’s team) were terrorizing me saying ‘we want a fight’ so they wanted to announce it that night at the Sacramento card (at FOX UFC Fight Night). Cause he was there, it’s the right crowd, it’s close to his hometown and they wanted to announce it. I got Robbie Lawler to accept the fight, I called him, and they turned it down and they’ve been radio silent on me ever since.”
Diaz and Lawler previously met at UFC 47 in 2004 which ended with a second round knockout win for the Stockton Native. This came before Lawler’s dramatic resurgence, however, as he went on to win the welterweight title and solidify himself as one of the most feared combatants in the division’s history.
White went on to reveal that he actually offered Diaz a fight with No. 3-ranked Demian Maia recently, but has yet to hear back from him on the offer. He also claimed that if Diaz doesn’t take the fight against Maia he’ll give it to Jorge Masvidal, who comes off of an impressive second round finish over Donald Cerrone:
“I just reached out to (Diaz’s team) and said what do you guys think about a fight with Demian Maia? I haven’t heard back from them yet,” White said. “If Nick doesn’t take it, I’ll give it to (Jorge) Masvidal.”
Both Diaz and Maia offer a strong ground game in their respective arsenals, so if a fight between the two finds itself on the ground (and it almost certainly would) it should be interesting to see who gains the upper-hand in that exchange. How do you see a potential bout between Diaz and Maia playing out?
