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Kamaru Usman was impressed with Nick Diaz's performance at the recently concluded UFC 266 pay-per-view and wants to see him fight again.
The reigning UFC welterweight champion recently took to Twitter to say that he hopes this wasn't a one-and-done affair for Diaz. The Stockton native stepped inside the cage last weekend for the first time in over six years.
"I want to see Nick Diaz fight again"
Nick Diaz fought fellow veteran Robbie Lawler on his much-awaited octagon return. The pair faced each other for the first time at UFC 47 back in 2004. Diaz emerged victorious on that occasion. 17 years later at UFC 266, the pair shared the octagon in an epic rematch.
After three rounds of back-and-forth action, Lawler brought Diaz down to his knees with a check hook and stung him with an uppercut. Diaz then decided that he had taken enough punishment and conceded the rematch to Lawler.
Nick Diaz claims he'd "beat the s**t" out of Kamaru Usman
Ahead of his rematch with Lawler, Nick Diaz claimed that he should have fought Kamaru Usman for the title instead of facing 'Ruthless'. Diaz argued that since he'd already beaten the former 170-pound champ, it didn't make sense for him to fight him again. He also claimed he'd "beat the sh*t" out of 'The Nigerian Nightmare' in a potential clash.
Speaking to ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, Diaz said:
"I think I'll beat the s**t out of Usman. I'll have a better shot against Usman than I do Lawler, just because I already beat Lawler. This doesn't make sense for me to go in and fight Robbie Lawler again. I don't know why I'm doing this... This should not happen. Whoever set this up is an idiot. I don't know why I'm doing this. I don't know why this happened. I should be fighting Kamaru Usman and that's it."
In response, Kamaru Usman acknowledged Diaz's callout respectfully. He took to Twitter and said:
"I like that energy"
Realistically, a fight between Nick Diaz and Kamaru Usman doesn't seem logical at the moment. Diaz was away for six years and despite showing some of his old tricks, he looked a bit rusty. At this point, it seems likely that we may have seen the last of the legendary Stockton native inside the octagon.
