McGregor Keen on Diaz Rematch

Source: Wikimedia

It’s the news we all wanted to hear: everyone’s favorite (or least favorite) Irishman is hoping for a third bout with Nate Diaz. We all know what happened in the previous two fights, so suffice to say, that a third meeting between the pair would bring closure to a lot of people. The news comes after McGregor’s assertion just a few days ago that he was uninterested in a second consecutive boxing match after losing to Mayweather last Summer. It’s no real surprise to fans of the Irishman who understand that while the big money is in the boxing ring, McGregor’s heart is in the octagon. He does love that cash money, though.

Despite BetStars offering odds on McGregor to fight both Manny Pacquiao and Paulie Malignaggi in March of next year, we’re still unsure as to whether The Notorious will ever step back inside the boxing ring. With McGregor, you just can’t tell, and according to Khabib Nurmagomedov, McGregor will be in no rush to jump back into the octagon.

Nurmagomedov believes that the lure of another big money fight in boxing could prove to be too good an offer to refuse. After all, we could be talking $10-15 million in the octagon vs. $100 million in the ring. He might just have a point. But the thing about McGregor is that he has unfinished business in the UFC with many fighters calling for him to lose his belts due to his inactivity. A win over Diaz and a monster payday for the UFC would silence a lot of those critics and potentially give McGregor a bit of breathing space to squeeze in a grudge fight against Malignaggi. You know you want to see it happen.

But just when we thought the dust had settled on the whole Mayweather thing, rumors start that the boxer is seriously thinking about a big money fight in the octagon. Yes, that’s right. Although Mayweather came out and quashed the rumors, McGregor has started the name-calling once again, and it kind of feels like we’ve been here before. Could it be that the two are laying the foundations (building the hype) for a return bout in the UFC? It’s entirely possible, and the fact is that with McGregor often preferring a punching and kicking style as opposed to grappling, he’s the perfect opponent for Mayweather should he decide to try his hand at MMA.

However, we still have the not quite so insignificant matter of McGregor’s next UFC fight. Dana White is talking a lot about McGregor’s contract, which suggests that there are plans afoot for a series of fights over the next 1-2 years. And Diaz is the next opponent that makes the most sense. It’s another grudge match and a guaranteed massive payday for the UFC, and it’s the fight that the fans want to see. But the question is will Diaz do it?

Since taking his break from the UFC, Diaz has been living the good life and keeping fighting fit. He’s adamant, though, that he will dictate the terms of his return should it ever happen. Already sitting on a fortune, Diaz has no need to fight again unless the UFC makes it worth his while, and according to reports, that would mean coughing up somewhere in the region of $15 million. Although it’s not an impossible figure, with the demand for the fight plus the desire for a third bout from McGregor, it shouldn’t take too much effort on anyone’s part to make this fight happen. And truth be told, if the fight does happen, it would be an impossible one to call. Both have been absent from the octagon for so long now that we’ve almost forgotten how good they are. One thing is for certain: if it happens, the fight will be epic.