Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images
Nate Diaz will make his return to UFC after a nearly three-year absence.
Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole reported Saturday that Diaz will fight Anthony Pettis at 170 pounds in the co-main event of UFC 241 on Aug. 17 in Anaheim, California. Diaz hasn’t stepped inside the Octagon since he lost to Conor McGregor at UFC 202 in August 2016.
UFC has formally announced two fights for the card.
Daniel Cormier will defend the heavyweight championship against Stipe Miocic in a rematch from UFC 226 when Cormier knocked out Miocic in the first round. Yoel Romero will also fight Paulo Costa, a matchup that was originally scheduled for UFC 230.
Diaz was slated to come back against Dustin Poirier at UFC 230. Less than a month before the event, an injury forced Poirier to withdraw, and the UFC removed Diaz altogether rather than set up a replacement opponent.
Diaz wrote a cryptic post on his official Facebook page on May 4 ahead of Canelo Alvarez’s victory over Daniel Jacobs, telling fans he “should be boxing these guys” but was “stuck in a cage.” He and the UFC clearly ironed out their differences.
Despite being out of the UFC for so long, Diaz remains a major star, and adding him to a pay-per-view with Cormier and Miocic should guarantee the company a strong buyrate.
Pettis will head into UFC 241 on the back of a hard-fought loss to Tony Ferguson at UFC 229 last October, when a broken hand forced his corner to stop the fight. He rebounded with a knockout of Stephen Thompson at UFC Fight Night 148 in March.
from Update News Topic http://bit.ly/2Yo4mU5
0 Comments