UFC 158: The UFC Might Never See Nick Diaz Again After Saturday

Nick Diaz doesn’t like fighting. Just ask him.

In a weird way, perhaps because he’s more profane than the average guy or he isn’t the most articulate after a life of scrapping on the streets of Stockton, it’s just assumed he loves punching people in the face for a living.

In actuality, after a year without it, it seems more obvious than ever that he kind of hates it.

And now as he stares down the biggest fight of his life—and more importantly (certainly in his estimation) the biggest payday—it’s becoming more and more clear: One way or another, the Octagon may never see Nick Diaz again once it’s all over.

There are any number of reasons for that to be the case, but with his amazing conference call last week, intriguing no-show of open workouts this week and some important expected appearances still to come—not the least of which is the fight itself—it’s becoming a real possibility this may be the final tour for the Nick Diaz Traveling Circus.

On the one hand, Diaz himself doesn’t like the fight game. Don’t be fooled for a minute by the fact that he’ll flip a guy off and try to choke him out when he’s in the cage. That’s essentially a fight-or-flight response from a highly-trained martial artist with few other marketable skills.

If he had a chance to get out with some money in his pocket and his faculties still intact, maybe to go teach jiu-jitsu, smoke pot and do triathlons for the rest of his time, he’d take it without hesitation.

He’s already said another suspension for pot wouldn’t be that bad because he wouldn’t have to fight again for a year or so, so that tells you where his head is when it comes to his career.

On the other, there’s the fact that his whole act has to be wearing thin on Dana White. White loves born fighters, which Diaz obviously is, but he hates guys who don’t play the game, which Diaz obviously doesn't.

If it wasn’t for his exciting style and ability to garner attention from lovers and haters alike, he’d already be cut. It’s basically only his capacity to sell pay-per-views and provide a guaranteed night of entertainment that has him in a job. Everything else he brings to the table, no matter how fascinating it is for media and fans, is a nightmare for the president.

After the GSP fight is over, the ice will be considerably thinner for Diaz with the UFC, because he’ll have given them the biggest moneymaker he can. That acrimony in a relationship between a Diaz that doesn’t care if he’s kept around and a White with less motivation to do so might see them heading to Splitsville. From there, it’s hard to see Diaz in a Bellator tournament or fighting Jon Fitch for beans in World Series of Fighting.

Then there’s the X-factor of Georges St-Pierre, who is so flustered with Diaz and so ready to lay a beating on him that the goal isn’t even to win anymore, it’s to make Diaz retire from the sport completely. Every time St-Pierre has been fired up to this extent, he’s been unstoppable in the cage.

Diaz is a lot of things, but a quitter isn’t one of them.

GSP won’t dictate the terms on which he leaves the sport, but it’s not hard to envision Nick taking a thumping from the champion and walking away because he got a huge payday out of it. St-Pierre will have his wish and achieve his goal, while Diaz will be largely indifferent and happy in retirement.

The fact is that there are a lot of ways the career of Nick Diaz could go after UFC 158. If oddsmakers and most fans are to be believed, very few of those avenues involve a lengthy title run after a drubbing of St-Pierre in his hometown.

Given his mindset heading into the fight, his constant proclamations of hatred toward his chosen profession and his complete and total disinterest in playing by anyone’s rules but his own, don’t be surprised if retirement is the route Nick Diaz chooses.