Nick Diaz: Would He Stand a Chance Against Anderson Silva?

Nick Diaz is back, and he’s wasting no time in calling out the best in the world for his UFC return.

Diaz’s head trainer and manager Caesar Gracie released a statement that Diaz was making his return to the Octagon earlier this evening, and he made it clear that Anderson Silva is the man that the Stockton, California-based fighter has his sights set on.

Gracie also said that Diaz will look to have his one-year suspension, which expires in February of next year, reduced to the point that he is able to fight sometime in late 2012.

Calling out big name opponents is nothing new from Diaz, as we’ve seen him verbally go after welterweight superstar Georges St-Pierre at numerous times over the last year. Nevertheless, calling out Silva is a bold move that Diaz hasn’t made since his days in the Strikeforce organization.

As far as his career is concerned, calling out Silva is the smartest possible move for Diaz.

The two fighters that would make the most sense for Diaz at welterweight, St-Pierre and Carlos Condit, are currently rumored to fight each other at UFC 154, as long as St-Pierre is healthy enough to compete. Furthermore, Silva has spent the last few days complaining about the lack of viable challengers to his 185-lb title.

Simply put, Diaz picked the perfect moment to come out of retirement and to try to talk his way into a big fight.

Whether or not the UFC bites on Diaz’s offer remains to be seen, but even if they do, the former Strikeforce champion is going to face the toughest test of his career.

Diaz is an amazing fighter in many aspects of MMA. His boxing may be the best in the sport, his jiu-jitsu is top notch, and his cardio has become something of legend.

However, none of this can save him from the beautiful violence that Anderson Silva brings to the cage.

Diaz’s aggressive standup attack falls right into the hands of the counter striking middleweight champion, and if he is somehow able to get the much bigger Silva to the mat, he’ll immediately have his hands full there as well.

Over the couple of years, few fighters have talked as much trash as Diaz, but when the time came to throw down in the cage, Diaz was usually able to back it up.

Sadly for fans of MMA’s greatest renegade, Anderson Silva is one guy that Diaz won’t be able back his talk up against.