"Everything has been set up" - John McCarthy is confident Nate Diaz will box Jake Paul after last UFC fight

John McCarthy believes there's a good chance Nate Diaz will fight Jake Paul in a boxing match after his UFC contract runs out.

For months now, we've seen both Jake Paul and Nate Diaz tease the idea of a showdown inside the boxing ring. It seemed fairly unlikely when it was first floated. However, with Diaz having just one fight left on his UFC contract, he'll soon be free to explore his options outside of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

John McCarthy, who has been keeping a close eye on proceedings, seems to think it's going to happen. The former MMA referee, in an episode of his podcast, said:

“Everything has been set up. If you noticed, Nate Diaz was at the Jake Paul/Tyron Woodley fight. You can sit there and say that’s because of Chris Avila, one of his guys was fighting, yes and no. Why did Chris Avila get the fight? There’s all kinds of things that are going on behind the back. It’s a matter of someone getting themselves clear from their contract, which would be Nate, and he would be able to then move on and he wants to fight Jake Paul. That’s what I think he’s gonna look towards doing.”

Watch the full episode below:

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Who will Nate Diaz fight first?

In order to fight Jake Paul, Nate Diaz first has to fight out the last bout on his UFC contract. John McCarthy and Josh Thomson noted that it's unlikely he would be able to get a title shot off the back of beating Dustin Poirier but in terms of potential foes, four come to mind: Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor, Jorge Masvidal and Vicente Luque.

The Luque fight may seem a bit out there, but it makes sense given both men have asked for it as recently as a few months ago. Poirier, McGregor and Masvidal all have significant history with Diaz and all three know the kind of box office appeal the Stockton native has.

Plus, they'd all probably be the favorite heading into a contest against him.