Diaz teases fans with his return but says he’s not in a position to accept a fight right now.
Nick Diaz, as enigmatic as ever, skirted around the issue of his UFC return in a recent interview on Jasta Radio.
Diaz, 33, was recently cleared to fight after serving an 18-month suspension for failing a drug test at UFC 183. The Stockton local passed two WADA-accredited tests but tested positive for marijuana metabolites in a third urine sample submitted to non-WADA accredited laboratory, Quest Diagnostics.
Diaz was initially suspended for five years and fined $165,000, but the former Strikeforce welterweight champion reached a settlement with the Nevada Athletic Commissionand received a reduced suspension and fine.
Now cleared to fight, Diaz was expected to make a return at the UFC 209 pay-per-view on March 4, but he reportedly turned down a championship bout against Tyron Woodley in the main event.
Lance Pugmire of the LA Times reported that Diaz plans to return ‘pretty soon’, but didn’t specify why he turned down a fight against Woodley.
The two-time UFC title challenger told Jasta Radio that he isn’t in the right ‘situation’ to accept a fight right now, but didn’t delve into the details of what his situation is.
“Right now, I’m trying to fix my situation,” Diaz said, per Chisanga Malata of the Daily Star UK. “If someone offered me a fight right now, it’s not going to happen. I’m not going to say (yes). I’m like, ‘no.’
“I’m going to work my way into the right situation and once I’m there then we can talk about a fight.”
Diaz last fought in 2015, when he lost a unanimous decision to Anderson Silva in his first ever middleweight bout. The result was overturned to a No Contest after ‘The Spider’ tested positive for steroids.
Despite his lengthy absence, Diaz remains one of the most talked about fighters in MMA and has kept his name in the headlines by calling out the likes of Woodley and Michael Bisping.
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