UFC's Dana White Talks Conor McGregor, Jorge Masvidal as Nate Diaz's Next Fight

Christopher Simpson @@CJSimpsonBRFeatured ColumnistAugust 18, 2019

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 17: Nate Diaz celebrates his victory over Anthony Pettis in their welterweight bout during the UFC 241 event at the Honda Center on August 17, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images

UFC President Dana White has discussed the possibility of Nate Diaz facing Jorge Masvidal or a rematch with Conor McGregor in his next fight.

White spoke to ESPN's Brett Okamoto after Diaz beat Anthony Pettis via unanimous decision at UFC 241 on Saturday:

On a potential fight with Masvidal, White said: "Who isn't interested in that fight? I mean, that's a very interesting fight."

Okamoto also asked White if he thought the fight had any impact on McGregor: "I haven't actually looked at my phone yet, so I don't know if it's had any [impact], but if it did, there's something on my phone."

Asked if he had to guess whether he had a message from McGregor and what the Irishman would think, he replied: "I'd say yes."

Diaz made his first UFC appearance in three years Saturday having taken a hiatus after two fights with McGregor in 2016.

The American won the first via a rear-naked choke in the second round, but McGregor picked up a majority-decision win in their rematch.

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The Athletic's Ben Fowlkes is hoping to see a third fight between the two:

Ben Fowlkes @benfowlkesMMA
Nate Diaz wins the decision. The crowd goes wild. Now let's get him to turn down a shot of Proper Twelve so we can get that Conor McGregor trilogy.

McGregor has not fought since his defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov in October last year, which was only his second UFC outing since beating Diaz. He also faced Eddie Alvarez in 2016 and won the lightweight title in the process.

In March, McGregor announced his retirement from MMA, though White expressed confidence the Irishman would step into the Octagon again.

As for Masvidal, Diaz called him out after beating Pettis (warning: contains profanity):

MMAFighting.com @MMAFighting
Raise your hand if you want Jorge Masvidal vs. Nate Diaz next. 🙋‍♂️ 🙋‍♀️ "We're fighting for the baddest motherf**ker in the game belt." Watch full video: https://t.co/hn7eAjDdIB https://t.co/q7gxaph6Gp

As The Athletic's Shaheen Al-Shatti observed, a clash between Diaz and Masvidal would hold major appeal:

Shaheen Al-Shatti @shaunalshatti
Also Nate creating his own belt then choosing people to challenge for it is A+ MMAing.

Masvidal, 34-13, is riding the crest of a wave after back-to-back wins over Darren Till and Ben Askren. The latter was the fastest knockout in UFC history as Masvidal ended the fight with a flying knee after just five seconds.

McGregor is perhaps the biggest box office draw in the UFC, though, and a decisive third fight with Diaz would be enormous.