Carlos Condit Would Rather Fight Diaz Than GSP: 5 Reasons This Bout Could Happen

Carlos Condit is set to face BJ Penn at UFC 137 to determine the UFC welterweight division's number one contender.

Also on the UFC 137 fight card, UFC welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre will be putting his title on the line against Nick Diaz.

If Condit beats Penn, he will either face Diaz or St-Pierre for the welterweight strap. Condit has gone on record saying that he would prefer to fight Diaz, as be believes it's a better stylistic matchup for him.

The very moment that Condit mentioned the possibility of fighting Diaz, fans began to salivate over the potential matchup.

Diaz and Condit are two of the most exciting fighters on the planet, and both come ready for war every time they step in the cage.

Indeed, this fight is a dream matchup for MMA fans and one that will hopefully come to fruition, one way or another.

Here are five reasons why this fight could happen.

Both Fighters Are Still Young

Carlos Condit is just 27 years old and Nick Diaz is 28.

Both of these guys have a good four or five years in their primes historically speaking, and they'll likely have a few years of fighting left after that.

With that much time remaining in their careers and these two fighting in the same weight class and within the same promotion, what are the odds that they'll never get matched up?

Pretty slim, I figure.

So rest easy, folks. Time is on our side in this one.

They Could Both Win Their Next Fights

It seems like the most unlikely circumstance, but it could happen.

Most people are not giving Diaz much of a chance against Georges St-Pierre—myself included—but it's certainly not impossible that he could win.

Condit has a better chance of winning his next fight than Diaz does, but he still has an incredibly tough test in front of him in the form of BJ Penn.

If both men are victorious in their upcoming bouts, they will fight each other next, for sure.

Diaz beating GSP would be a giant upset, but stranger things have happened. Just ask Matt Serra.

They Could Both Lose Their Next Fights

Arguably the most probable way this fight could happen, both these men could lose their next fights.

If Diaz loses to GSP and Condit loses to Penn, Penn will go on to fight for the title and Diaz and Condit will be left needing new opponents.

The likelihood that they'll be matched up in this scenario is reasonably high, despite there being a lot of other contenders in the division whom they could be pitted against.

This is a marketable fight, so I think UFC President Dana White will jump on the first opportunity he has to set it up.

Nick Diaz Is Crazy

Nick Diaz is a fabulously talented fighter, but he's also a little bit off his rocker.

Diaz has been involved in two post-fight brawls in his career. One was with Joe Riggs in the hospital after the two had fought earlier that night, and the other was the famous Strikeforce: Nashville post-fight brawl.

A proud individual, Diaz does not like to be disrespected and tends to take things personally.

If he feels that Condit has disrespected him by saying that he would be an easier fight than GSP, then we might not need a cage to see this one go down.

One thing is for sure: If Condit is ever walking alone at night and hears someone yell "Stockton," he better be ready for a fight.

The Fans Want to See It Happen

Whether or not you like Dana White, no one can deny that he always listens to the fans and tries his hardest to give them what they want.

If enough people make it known that they want to see this fight happen, then White will do his best to make it happen because that's just good business.

Fans have been talking about this fight quite a bit lately, so I'm thinking we'll see it happen within the next two years.

Andrew Barr is a Featured Columnist for Bleacherreport.com. For updates on what's happening in the world of MMA, follow him on Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/AndrewBarr8