Nate Diaz Says Conor McGregor Has to Prove He's Not Fragile Before UFC Trilogy Fight
Nate Diaz said he's open to a trilogy fight with Conor McGregor under a couple of conditions.
"Conor's gonna have to get him some wins and prove he's not so fragile first," Diaz wrote Wednesday on Twitter.
His comments came in response to UFC president Dana White telling TMZ Sports he'd be "shocked" if a third encounter between Diaz and McGregor doesn't eventually happen.
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Diaz previously told TMZ his plan was to fight Dustin Poirier, which White explained was still a work in progress, to complete his current contract and then walk away from the Octagon.
A third clash with McGregor would be highly lucrative, however, so leaving that door open makes sense for the 36-year-old California native.
They faced off twice in 2016. Diaz won the first meeting by second-round submission after nine entertaining minutes of back-and-forth action. McGregor leveled the score five months later when he scored a victory by majority decision.
Diaz embarked on a three-year hiatus from the UFC following the loss to McGregor before returning with a win over Anthony Pettis in August 2019. He's since lost fights against Jorge Masvidal and Leon Edwards to drop his career record to 20-13.
McGregor is 2-3 since the win over Diaz, including a pair of losses to Poirier in 2021. He suffered a broken leg in the second matchup and remains without a firm timetable to return, telling SevereMMA (h/t MMAWeekly) he probably won't start sparring until April.
"It's just about getting back in and competing, getting myself in pristine condition and going in there and enjoying myself and putting on a show for the fans," the 33-year-old Irishman said Friday. "I'm in no hurry, no rush."
Hypothetically, the long-awaited trilogy fight could happen in the latter stages of 2022, but if Diaz is being honest in his thought (and not just trolling) that McGregor must prove himself, then it probably won't happen until mid-2023 at the earliest.
It'll be an easy sell for the UFC if the fight eventually comes to fruition.
