Nick Diaz is back ... again.

Fights for the eldest Diaz brother have come out of nowhere since 2013. Albeit, there have only been two with a third now scheduled. However, since he lost his lone career undisputed UFC title shot against Georges St-Pierre at UFC 158, Diaz has essentially been semi-retired. The math checks out, folks.

It was announced yesterday that Diaz will battle Vicente Luque — the No. 14-ranked welterweight contender — at UFC Saudi Arabia on August 3. Somehow, Diaz is fighting upward in the official UFC rankings after his concerningly poor effort against Robbie Lawler at UFC 266 in September 2021. Now 40, Diaz (26-10, 2 NC) lost the Lawler rematch via a third-round TKO and hasn’t won a fight in 13 years. Regardless, UFC Hall of Famer and commentator Daniel Cormier has some intrigue in one more Diaz appearance.

“I was very shocked,” Cormier said of the fight announcement on ESPN MMA’s YouTube channel. “After watching Nick Diaz compete the last time, I was like, ‘Okay, he’s done.’ But when I heard the news, I was excited! I got so excited because it’s like how often do we get an opportunity to see a guy that meant so much to us? I watched him in Strikeforce, I do all that.

“Now, the matchup, that’s a little worrisome for me because Robbie Lawler seemed to be at the same stage in his career as him. Vicente Luque is not there. This is a much more dangerous fight for Nick Diaz. I just hope that he shows a better form this time. Honestly, man, excitement because I get to see a guy that I’ve watched for a long time. Confusion in terms of who the matchup is. Tony Ferguson’s fighting on the card, too. Put them together. That makes more sense to me.”

Ferguson, 40, also has a welterweight matchup now scheduled for the event. Tasked with his fellow past winner of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF), Ferguson will face Michael Chiesa.

If Ferguson can pull off the upset, he’ll end his record seven-fight losing streak, which has led many within the community to call for his retirement, including Cormier and UFC CEO Dana White. Seeing both Ferguson and Diaz on the same card feels like a missed opportunity when they aren’t fighting each other if they have to fight at all. There’s even the tie-in with Diaz’s younger brother Nate defeating Ferguson in September 2022.

Ultimately, once great champions always have a chance to pull out some former glory, believes Cormier.

“To me, I watched — I’m not making comparisons,” Cormier said. “But I do recognize that a great champion always has one last night. I watched George Foreman at 47 years old beat Michael Moorer in a fight that he wasn’t even supposed to compete in, and he got it done. He was a little old, he was a little out of shape, knocked him out. Got beat on, his toughness carried him.

“Every great champion has one night left. So, for me, it’s about seeing if Nick has one more night. He might not, and hey, give him the benefit of the doubt. If he goes out and looks like he did last time, let’s be done with the Nick Diaz experiment. Shoot, man. This dude has earned an opportunity to go out there one more time and see if he can do something special.”

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TOP STORIES

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Comparison. Michael Page roasts Ian Machado Garry, calls him ‘a bad BBL version’ of Conor McGregor

Brash. Sean Strickland says UFC gloves ‘absolutely suck,’ trashes Conor McGregor, BKFC, Bryce Hall

Nope. Cesar Almeida reacts to new gloves debuting at UFC 302: ‘It didn’t change much’

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LET’S WATCH

The MMA Hour.

UFC 302 Media Day.

Embedded 3.

Poirier vs. Saint Denis BTS.

Biggest Upsets: Usman vs. Edwards 2.

Islam’s camp.

Seanbedded 3.

War Room: Strickland vs. Costa.

Wonderboy predicts.

Fancy Makhachev vs. Poirier preview.

Invicta 15 KOs.

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LISTEN UP

No Bets Barred. MMA Fighting’s Jed Meshew and Conner Burks discuss whether Dustin Poirier will finish his story at UFC 302 and claim lightweight gold.

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MORNING MUSIC

Go to Twitter, use the #MorningReport hashtag, or find one of my tweets with it, and drop me a jam you’re currently really into. I’ll pick the best one alongside my daily choice and give you a shoutout! You can also share in the comments below — those are just harder to sift through sometimes!

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SOCIAL SCROLL DOWN

Dog.

Leading woman.

Flow.

Golden gloves.

History.

Good try.

Fight Inc.

Of course.

Conor...

Love it.

Lol.

Got ‘eem!

They did.

Okay. It’s okay.

Size matters.

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FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Alonzo Menifield (15-4-1) vs. Azamat Murzakanov (13-0); UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3

Tony Ferguson (25-10) vs. Michael Chiesa (16-7); UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3

Mackenzie Dern (13-5) vs. Lupita Godinez (12-4); UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3

Vicente Luque (22-10-1) vs. Nick Diaz (26-10); UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3

Casey O’Neill (9-2) vs. Tereza Bledá (7-1); UFC 305, Aug. 17

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FINAL THOUGHTS

If Nick Diaz isn’t even excited to see Nick Diaz fight then no one should be.

Thanks for reading!

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EXIT POLL

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