After going public with his grievances against the Ultimate
Fighting Championship, it appears that Nate Diaz will
finally get chance to return to action in the Octagon.
Advertisement
UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell informed promotion
broadcast partner
ESPN on Tuesday that Diaz and Khamzat
Chimaev have verbally agreed to meet at UFC 279 on Sept. 10.
The event takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and Diaz vs.
Chimaev is expected to serve as the card’s five-round main event.
Meanwhile, a bantamweight championship clash between Aljamain
Sterling and T.J. Dillashaw tat was initially targeted for UFC 279
is no longer in the works for the event, according to multiple
reports.
During a recent appearance on “The MMA Hour,” Diaz
claimed that the UFC was holding him “hostage” over the final
fight on his contract. It is unclear at this time if the fight with
Chimaev will fulfill the deal, or if he has agreed to some type of
extension with the Las Vegas-based promotion. The Stockton, Calif.,
native last appeared at UFC 263 in June 2021, where he fell to
Leon
Edwards via unanimious decision in a five-round contest.
Diaz representative Zach Rosenfield confirmed the pairing with
ESPN, adding: “This is a fight Nate has been asking for since the
middle of April.”
Chimaev has emerged as one of the UFC’s hottest rising stars since
his Octagon debut in July 2020. The Allstars Training Center export
is 5-0 in the organization and is coming off his biggest win to
date, a unanimous decision triumph over former welterweight title
challenger Gilbert
Burns in a “Fight of the Year” contender at UFC 273.
“I am going to handle Nate Diaz’s funeral with the UFC,” Chimaev
said in a statement issued to ESPN through his representatives.