Nate Diaz To Fight Final UFC Bout This September
Jul 19, 2022, 1:42 PM | Updated: 2:03 pm
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - JUNE 12: Nate Diaz enters the octagon to fight Leon Edwards of Jamaica during their UFC 263 welterweight match at Gila River Arena on June 12, 2021 in Glendale, Arizona.
This one has been in the works for a while.
UFC is finalizing a welterweight bout between Khamzat Chimaev and Stockton native Nate Diaz to headline UFC 279 on Sept. 10, UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto Tuesday.
The contracts have not been officially signed, according to the ESPN insider, but that the fight and date had been verbally agreed on between the two parties. UFC 279 will take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Scheduled for five rounds inside the Octagon, Diaz’s representiave, Zach Rosenfield, noted Tuesday that the matchup had been at the request of his client, vying for months with the UFC to make it happen.
“This is a fight Nate has been asking for since the middle of April,” Rosenfield told ESPN on Tuesday.
Khamzat vs. Nate. UFC 279 on Sept. 10 at T-Mobile Arena. Main event. Five rounds. Verbally agreed, per UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell. It is the final fight on Nate Diaz’s current UFC contract. pic.twitter.com/p7lrcoroH0
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) July 19, 2022
UFC 279 will serve as the final fight on Diaz’s contract with the UFC. Negotiations had reportedly occurred between the promotion and Diaz’s camp, but talks broke down after the fighter made it clear he wanted to fight out his current contract.
The last time we saw Nate Diaz (20-13) fight was at UFC 263 back in June 2021, losing to welterweight title contender Leon Edwards via unanimous decision.
Chimaev (11-0) last fought at UFC 273 in April, seeing off another welterweight contender in Gilbert Burns, via unanimous decision. The victory was the biggest of the young fighter’s career, his first against a top-ranked opponent. One of the fastest-rising title contenders in UFC history, he is 5-0 since signing with the UFC in 2020.
Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) provided this comment about the fight to ESPN. Translated from Swedish by his representative Majdi Shammas.
“I am going to handle Nate Diaz’s funeral with the UFC.”
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) July 19, 2022
“I am going to handle Nate Diaz’s funeral with the UFC,” Chimaev said, in a statement he provided in Swedish to his representatives.
