Nick Diaz’s return to the ring has been confirmed by his long-term coach, Cesar Gracie, who revealed that fans would get to see the legendary fighter back in action before the end of the year.
Garcia made the revelation on social media when he stated that fans should look forward to Diaz fighting again this year.
The 42 years old fighter has been out of the ring since he suffered a shocking defeat in the hands of Robbie Lawler in October 2021, 17 years after Diaz beat the latter in their first fight together.
Fans Initially Thought Diaz Was Done Fighting
Before the announcement of Nick Diaz’s return for yet another time, many have reasons to believe that he was done with fighting, and to support such beliefs, he maintained a not so unusual silence since he suffered his last defeat.
With a 26 to 10 win-loss record, he first retired in 2013 after he lost his two previous fights to Carlos Condit and Georges St-Pierre before coming back again to be defeated by Anderson Silva before the result was overturned after both fighters tested positive for drug use.
Diaz did not fight again for the next six years before he entered the ring at age 38 to slug it out with Lawler which ended in humiliation for him.
Not many thought he was going to return to fight again as coupled with his serial defeats, he also gave signs that he had lost interest in the sports; he was only in it for the paycheck.
The last test of victory for Nick was in 2011 when he defeated B.J. Penn in a unanimous decision.
His perceived lack of interest in the fight and unending defeats that continue to dent his legacy have forced big names in the sport including President of the UFC Dana White, Jorge Masvidal, and Josh Thomson to call on him to retire.
Nick Diaz’s Return Is Coming When His Brother Nate Diaz is set to Fight Conor McGregor
While Nick is preparing for a return, his brother, Nate Diaz who has a 20 to 13 win-loss record in the MMA is getting set for yet another fight with Conor McGregor.
This will be the third time that Nate and Conor would be slugging it out in the MMA after their two previous meetings ended in each of them walking away with a win, giving Nick the glory of becoming the first fighter to defeat Notorious in a UFC fight back in 2016.
With age no longer on his side and only a fight left in his contract, it is likely that after his fight with McGregor, the younger Diaz may end his fighting career as he does not show interest in signing another contract for now.
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