Nick Diaz's Top 5 Career Moments

A past Strikeforce and WEC champion, Nick Diaz could go down as one of the better fighters to never win a UFC championship.

In February 2012 and March 2013, Diaz had respective shots at UFC gold opposite Carlos Condit and Georges St-Pierre, but he came up short in both instances. Following his loss to St-Pierre, Diaz stepped away from fighting for nearly two years, holding out for another big fight.

Despite having lost two in a row, his patience paid off in a big way. At UFC 183, which takes place in Las Vegas on Saturday, Diaz will meet Anderson Silva, arguably the greatest fighter in MMA history.

Upsetting Silva this weekend would be Diaz's greatest accomplishment. Heading into one of the most important fights he's ever had, here are the five best moments in Diaz's MMA career.

5. Nick Diaz vs. Robbie Lawler at UFC 47

Credit: UFC

Following a win over Jeremy Jackson in his UFC debut, Diaz met fellow up-and-coming welterweight Robbie Lawler at UFC 47.

At the time, Diaz was still viewed as a fighter who was much better on the ground than on the feet. So, it was a bit surprising when he came out looking to aggressively box with Lawler, who had recorded six knockouts in his nine bouts prior to competing against Diaz in April 2004.

The opening round saw both fighters land some solid shots, but Diaz gained an edge with his high-volume output. A little over a minute into the second stanza, Diaz absorbed a Lawler combination before catching his opponent with his hands down, landing a right hook that led to Diaz's first knockout win inside the Octagon. 

While he had already been WEC champion, this highlight-reel knockout of Lawler ultimately put Diaz on the map with UFC fans.

4. Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley

Credit: UFC

In his final Strikeforce appearance in April 2011, Diaz ran into UFC veteran and dangerous striker Paul Daley.

Like in his clash with Lawler much earlier in his career, Diaz did not hesitate to trade with an opponent who possessed scary stand-up skills. 

That nearly backfired, as Daley badly rocked Diaz at one point in the opening round. However, Diaz showed his toughness, recovered and turned the tables by finishing Daley with a flurry of strikes in the final seconds of the opening round.

Had Diaz lost that bout against Daley, he would have returned to the UFC roster in a completely different position. Instead, he returned as one of the top contenders in the welterweight class.

3. Nick Diaz vs. Frank Shamrock at Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz

Credit: UFC

In April 2009, former UFC champion Frank Shamrock welcomed Diaz to Strikeforce.

Although Shamrock was not the same fighter who had dominated the 205-pound division inside the Octagon, he remained a big name and had a size advantage over Diaz in their matchup. Because his opponent was an MMA legend, beating Shamrock gave Diaz his most noteworthy MMA win to that point in his career.

Diaz's tremendous pace ultimately helped him defeat Shamrock. By the second round, Shamrock was visibly exhausted and became a sitting duck for Diaz's pinpoint punches. A hook to the body sent Shamrock to the ground, and Diaz stayed on his opponent until referee John McCarthy stepped in.

Since that turned out to be Shamrock's final performance, it didn't turn out to be Diaz's most impressive victory. However, it was a debut win that set Diaz up for a stellar Strikeforce career.

2. Nick Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi at Pride FC 33

Credit: UFC

Following a knockout win over Gleison Tibau in November 2006, Diaz joined Pride FC and faced off with Takanori Gomi in February 2007.

At the time, Gomi was one of the best lightweights in the world, making Diaz a somewhat sizable underdog. So, defeating The Fireball Kid would take Diaz's career to another level.

The knockout artist he is, Gomi came out swinging hard. Diaz was able to weather the storm, though, which led to a tired Gomi attempting a takedown early in the second round. Dangerous off his back, Diaz locked up a rare gogoplata and forced his opponent to tap.

Unfortunately, Diaz's win was later overturned to a no-contest because marijuana metabolites were detected in his drug test. However, seeing as marijuana isn't really a performance enhancer, I and many others still consider this to be one of Diaz's greatest showings.

1. Nick Diaz vs. B.J. Penn at UFC 137

After he turned into one of the bigger names in MMA under the Strikeforce banner, Diaz returned to the UFC in October 2011, nearly five years following his prior trip to the Octagon.

The UFC originally booked Diaz to meet St-Pierre in an immediate UFC title shot but later removed from the bout because he missed a press conference prior to UFC 137. As it turned out, St-Pierre didn't end up competing at UFC 137 anyway, and Diaz headlined the card against B.J. Penn.

While he hadn't had a ton of recent success in the welterweight division, Penn was a former UFC champion and a tough stylistic matchup for Diaz on paper. Diaz made it look surprisingly easy against arguably the greatest lightweight in MMA history, though, battering Penn with boxing for three rounds en route to a lopsided decision win.

The win over Penn put Diaz back into the title picture, and he ended up battling Carlos Condit for an interim title in his next outing. In a closely contested bout, Diaz lost to Condit and hasn't had his hand raised since that victory over Penn.