With the announcement of the UFC 250 Freedom card having come and gone, all eyes are now on who the next opponent of Conor McGregor will be for his speculated return later in the year.
Dana White has confirmed that a July bout at International Fight Week is a possibility, although according to the UFC president, “nothing is remotely close to being done.”
The latest rumours have Max Holloway as the man at the front of the queue to welcome ‘The Notorious’ back to the Octagon, but the UFC has missed the boat on bringing in the perfect opponent for the iconic Irishman.
Conor McGregor could have rematched his old rival, not Max Holloway
‘Blessed’ has got a great shout to be the man to get the call for a ‘red panty night’ against McGregor. The two fought previously, way back in August 2013, with McGregor claiming a unanimous decision victory to move to 14-2, but he blew out his knee and wouldn’t fight for almost a year after that.
Holloway, on the other hand, would go on a stunning 13-fight winning streak after that bout, which saw him climb the rankings and become the undisputed featherweight champion of the world, defending his crown twice in the process.
Both fighters have gone on to be two of the biggest names in the sport since their first fight, and after Holloway was dominated by Charles Oliveira in his last outing, a rematch looks to make sense.
But with Holloway still very much in the mix at the top of the rankings, and with McGregor having been out of action for almost five years following a broken leg, it feels like a mismatch.
Instead, the UFC had the opportunity to make a fight that is truly for the fans and also makes a lot of sense by bringing Nate Diaz back into the organization.
UFC Should Have Done Everything to Get Nate Diaz Back
Dana White has confirmed that he held talks with Stockton’s own Nate Diaz about a return to the UFC, but a deal couldn’t be agreed upon, and now Diaz is set to fight for Jake Paul’s MVP on the undercard of Ronda Rousey vs Gina Carrano, when he takes on Mike Perry in an MMA bout.
This is despite Stockton’s Own admitting that UFC offered more than MVP for his MMA comeback. Diaz alleged the potential opponents he’d face in the UFC weren’t the right opponents at the time.
“I think that if I went to the UFC, I wouldn’t have been fighting the fighters that I want to be fighting. I want to fight the best of the best,” Diaz told Theo Von.
But if the UFC were serious about still being the MMA organisation and putting on the fights that make the most sense and the fans want to see, they could have gotten this deal done.
It’s a fight that produced some of the most iconic moments in the sport’s history, and a rivalry that has transcended MMA. It would also be a bout between two fighters that, on a professional level, makes the most sense.
The UFC is desperate for star power. This is the weakest the roster has looked on that front in a long time. But revisiting this rivalry one final time would have been the perfect way to get people back on board and create a platform for the winner to step up a level in their next fight.
Instead, Diaz is fighting elsewhere, and McGregor will be returning as a major underdog, where a defeat will only see his star fall further, leaving the UFC with even less star power going forward.
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