Nate Diaz Returns, Faces Rafael Dos Anjos in December
The iconoclastic lightweight, who engaged in a public back-and-forth battle with the UFC over fighter pay, will return to the cage Dec. 13, when he is scheduled to face top lightweight Rafael Dos Anjos in the co-main event of UFC on Fox 13.
The contest, which was first reported by MMAJunkie.com, will be Diaz's first in more than a year. Diaz (17-9) has been on the sidelines since his Nov. 13 TKO defeat of Gray Maynard.ย
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".@NateDiaz209 is back! Diaz vs @RdosAnjosMMA co-main event #UFCPhoenix! Tix on sale Oct 10th! http://t.co/BhREqBEdKC pic.twitter.com/hLFvhwYhnh
โ UFC (@ufc) September 23, 2014"
In April of this year, Diaz lashed out at the UFC for what he perceived to be inappropriately low fighter pay. He told MMAFighting.com's Ariel Helwani that UFC fighter pay is "chump change," especially when compared to the massive contracts received by top boxers.
This set off a tit-for-tat dispute that saw, among other things, the UFC pull Diaz from its official rankings for "inactivity."
But everything appears to be settled now if this fight announcement is any indication. The reclusive Diaz has not yet offered any public reaction to the announcement.
Diaz (17-9) has ridden an aggressive street-fighting style in the cage and an acerbic and plain-spoken style outside of it to achieve a status as one of the UFC's most well-known anti-heroes. Along with his brother Nick, Nate Diaz is regularly embroiled in some conflict, be it with UFC brass or other fighters.
But he has also seen solid results of late. After returning to lightweight after a stint at welterweight, Diaz won three in a row before losing to then-champion Benson Henderson and Josh Thomson. He returned to the win column with his knockout over Maynard.
His opponent, Dos Anjos, may be one of the most feared (and underrated) competitors in the division and possibly the entire UFC. The Brazilian (22-7) has won seven of his last eight, with wins coming over the likes of Henderson and Donald Cerrone. His lone defeat in that stretch came against uber-phenom Khabib Nurmagomedov, who is currently injured but purportedly at the top of the division's crowded contender list.
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