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Robbie Lawler and Nick Diaz delivered an absolute banger on the main card at UFC 266. Diaz returned to the octagon after almost six years and went toe-to-toe against the former welterweight champion.
Both legends chose to stand and trade hands for as long as the fight lasted, leading to a striking masterclass. Robbie Lawler eventually overwhelmed Nick Diaz and caught him with a right hook that sent him crashing to the canvas in the third round. Referee Jason Herzog called a stop to the contest 44 seconds into the third round after the Stockton native failed to get back on his feet.
Robbie Lawler has now revealed what he told Nick Diaz after their UFC 266 middleweight bout. According to 'Ruthless,' he thanked Diaz for bringing out the best in him and wished him luck. According to Marc Raimondi of ESPN, Lawler told Diaz:
"Thank you for bringing the best out of me. I have a lot of respect for you. Hopefully your life is gonna get together and good things are going to happen to you."
Robbie Lawler and Nick Diaz previously faced each other at UFC 47 in 2004. Ironically, Diaz's check right hook knocked Lawler out in the second round during their first outing.
Nick Diaz did not want to fight Robbie Lawler
Nick Diaz is never one to mince his words, whether inside a cage or in front of a camera. Diaz recently shared his resentment towards MMA in a brutally honest interview with Brett Okamoto of ESPN.
According to Nick Diaz, he couldn't get away from the sport despite repeated attempts. Diaz also revealed that he wanted to fight UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman rather than Robbie Lawler. Diaz told Brett Okamoto:
"I think I'll beat the s--- 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."
