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#4. UFC welterweight division: Nick Diaz vs Leon Edwards
‘Diablo’ is finally coming home to the UFC.
As is par for the course when his brother Nate fights, there was blood everywhere at UFC 263. Despite staging a vicious, late-fight comeback, Nate Diaz found himself on the wrong end of a unanimous decision against Leon Edwards.
While Edwards continues to wait for his phantom welterweight title shot, there’s a potential money fight in the wings. At UFC 266 next month, Nick Diaz is returning for another war with Robbie Lawler.
Assuming ‘Diablo’ wins (or is at least in good enough health to fight again before 2022 rolls in), an Edwards grudge match could be a big money fight for the winter. Nick Diaz was present for his brother’s return against Edwards earlier this year. He enthusiastically supported Nate from the audience and was unsurprisingly displeased with the end result.
Could he look to avenge his brother’s loss by terminating Edwards’ nine-fight win streak? Claiming Edwards’ scalp would help push the long-absent Strikeforce legend closer to another UFC welterweight title bout. For Edwards, beating both Diaz brothers back-to-back would surely be enough to finally net him a title shot.
#3. UFC middleweight division: Israel Adesanya vs Robert Whittaker
This one appears to be a foregone conclusion for later this year. Israel Adesanya has been running roughshod over the UFC middleweight division for three years now. Robert Whittaker has already taken on ‘The Last Stylebender’ once. Their clash came at UFC 243, where Adesanya ended Whittaker’s title reign via second-round KO.
Since then, Adesanya has remained undefeated at middleweight. His sole loss as in the octagon came against UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259. He quickly bounced back with a unanimous decision win over Marvin Vettori at UFC 263.
As it stands, Adesanya looks ready to come full circle by facing Whittaker once more. The two have been trading insults on social media again and rumors of a fight between them are swirling.
If Adesanya can vanquish ‘The Reaper’ again, he may be out of mountains to climb as a middleweight. Could another crack at light heavyweight gold be on the cards?
For Whittaker, it will be a chance to redeem losing in front of a partisan Melbourne crowd last time. If the multi-faceted fighter can stop Adesanya, his legacy as a middleweight great will be set.
