Nate Diaz is finally set to make his return to the Octagon. According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, Diaz will be competing in the co-main event of UFC 230 which takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The opponent? The always exciting Dustin Poirier who has won eight of his last nine bouts, so you can expect plenty of fireworks in the world’s most famous arena.
The bout is expected to officially be announced during a Friday press conference in Los Angeles ahead of this weekend’s UFC 227 pay-per-view.
The bout marks the first fight for Diaz in the UFC since Aug. 2016 when he suffered a majority decision loss to Conor McGregor in a Fight of the Night Performance. The fight with McGregor was a rematch of their March 2016 meeting where Diaz scored a stunning second-round submission victory over the Irishman in a Performance of the Night, Fight of the Night, and Submission of the Year effort.
Poirier, meanwhile, is fresh off of a TKO victory over Eddie Alvarez on July 28. Poirier has only lost once since April 2015 and has recorded six knockout finishes over his list of star-studded opponents which includes Alvarez, Justin Gaethje, and Anthony Pettis. Poirier received $50,000 fight night bonuses in each of his last four wins.
A main event has yet to be announced for UFC 230, but we can expect an update in the coming weeks.
Updated UFC 230 Fight Card
- Nate Diaz vs. Dustin Poirier
- David Branch vs. Ronaldo Souza
- Luke Rockhold vs. Chris Weidman
- Paulo Costa vs. Yoel Romero
- Sultan Aliev vs. Lyman Good
