Want to see the Diaz brothers enter the octagon in 2017? Don’t hold your breath.
Nate Diaz hasn’t fought since losing to rival Conor McGregor in August 2016, while his brother, Nick, has been idle since January 2015. But their inaction hasn’t been for lack of trying on Dana White’s part. In a recent interview with TMZ Sports, the UFC president insisted he’s reached out to both brothers with fight offers, only to get rebuffed at every turn.
“I don’t know if those guys will ever fight again,” White told TMZ Sports. “We offer them fights all the time. We offer fights and they turn them down. I don’t know what (Nate) wants. That’s up to them. If they want to fight next week or they never want to fight again, that’s up to them, that’s not up to me.
“They don’t seem like they want to fight. Either one of them.”
There’s some truth to White’s comments. Nate very publicly and very angrily admitted he turned down White’s offer to face former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez back in March. He also said in an interview Wednesday with MMAFighting he rejected a July bout with Tony Ferguson at UFC 213 when his terms weren’t met.
The welterweight fighter even insisted he’s taking the rest of 2017 off to focus on his competitive motorcycle racing career.
“There’s nothing going on and I’m not fighting nobody,” Diaz told MMAFighting, via FOX Sports. “… I’ve got my race season going on with my brother. We’ve got a real competitive race season going on; we’ve got a lot of races to do. I’m enjoying just chilling.”
Of course, Diaz could just be bluffing, but he doesn’t sound like a man itching to return to the octagon.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
