Tag: Nick Diaz

UFC 310’s Vicente Luque puts Nick Diaz in the past after two scrapped bouts

Vicente Luque is done with pursuing a possible fight with Nick Diaz.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] is done with pursuing a possible fight with [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag].

Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) was initially scheduled to fight Diaz at UFC on ABC 7 August in Abu Dhabi, but the bout was scrapped after Diaz pulled out due to travel issues. The pair were rebooked for Saturday’s UFC 310 (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, Hulu, ESPN+) event at T-Mobile Arena, but Diaz withdrew once again.

Now, Luque faces rising welterweight contender Themba Gorimbo (14-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC) instead. Luque explains that after a concerning video of Diaz surfaced, he had an inkling that the fight could be off again.

“Maybe a week after the video, something like that, I’m not sure how long ago that is,” Luque told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC 310 media day. “Me and Ali (Abdelaziz), my manager – we were talking about it. Without even the UFC saying anything, ‘Let’s try to reach out to them and make sure that something’s going on.’

“When I was supposed to fight in August and it didn’t happen, the UFC wanted this fight – it was a big fight. I said, ‘OK, let’s do it – but I want to fight this year.’ I told Ali, ‘I’ll be ready for anybody.’ I knew, like, ‘Maybe it’s not going to happen, so I’ll stay ready for whoever steps up,’ and great that Themba stepped up and now we get a fight.”

After Gorimbo picked up his fourth-straight win over Niko Price, he offered to be a backup against Luque or Diaz if either pulled out – and he got his wish.

“When he said that, I heard right away and my mind was like, ‘OK, if something happens (with Diaz), there is somebody,” Luque said. “There’s somebody that is going to say yes. So in my mind, I knew that he could be an option – maybe even the first option, and that’s what happened.”

After the first Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) fight was scrapped, Luque was hoping for a rebooking. But after the second fight fell through, “The Silent Assassin” is no longer interested.

“At this point, I don’t think it will happen again,” Luque said. “Maybe – who knows. But I’m up the division. I’m looking to get past Themba. That’s first mission to be accomplished, and after that I’m looking up. I think that the Nick fight is past.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Nick Diaz officially out of UFC 310; Vicente Luque gets new opponent

Fight fans won’t see Nick Diaz in the UFC cage in 2024, after all.

Fan-favorite UFC star [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] won’t be competing in 2024 after all.

Saturday during the UFC Fight Night 248 broadcast, the promotion confirmed Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) is out of his Dec. 7 bout at UFC 310 vs. [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) for undisclosed reasons. MMA Mania first reported the change.

Stepping in for Diaz will be [autotag]Themba Gorimbo[/autotag] (14-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC). The three-round welterweight bout will take place on the card’s prelims at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The cancellation comes days after a bizarre video of Diaz sitting on the ground and attempting to light something on fire went viral on social media. It’s unclear what Diaz was doing exactly, as is the original source of the video.

Diaz, 41, has not competed since a September 2021 loss to Robbie Lawler. That fight is his only since January 2015. He attempted a comeback for an August bout vs. Luque, but withdrew from that one, too, though that was due to “travel issues,” according to the promotion.

Zimbabwe’s Gorimbo, 33, steps into the highest-profile MMA fight of his life against a former welterweight contender. He enters the bout on a four-fight winning streak that consists of victories over Takashi Sato, Pete Rodriguez, Ramiz Brahimaj, and Niko Price.

Luque, 32, aims to bounce back from a TKO loss to Joaquin Buckley in March. The defeat was his third in four fights with the lone victory in the stretch a unanimous decision over Rafael dos Anjos.

With the change, the UFC 310 lineup includes:

  • Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura – for flyweight title
  • Ian Machado Garry vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov
  • Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
  • Kron Gracie vs. Bryce Mitchell
  • Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
  • Dominick Reyes vs. Anthony Smith
  • Clay Guida vs. Chase Hooper
  • Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman
  • Michael Chiesa vs. Max Griffin
  • Themba Gorimbo vs. Vicente Luque
  • Cody Durden vs. Joshua Van
  • Martin Buday vs. Rizvan Kuniev
  • Bryan Battle vs. Randy Brown
  • Lukasz Brzeski vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
  • Doo Ho Choi vs. Nate Landwehr

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Daniel Cormier: Nick Diaz must be locked in to ‘not embarrass himself’ vs. Vicente Luque at UFC 310

Daniel Cormier believes things could get ugly for Nick Diaz if he doesn’t take his UFC 310 return seriously.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] hopes [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] shows up in shape against [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag].

Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) returns against Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) in a welterweight bout at UFC 310 on Dec. 7 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).

Diaz hasn’t competed since a TKO loss to Robbie Lawler in September 2021, when he looked out of shape in what was his first fight in more than six years. Diaz’s team later revealed he was dealing with a neck injury, which hampered his training camp.

“The thing about Nick Diaz, for me: I want the guy from the pictures, I’m going to just say it,” Cormier said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Chael Sonnen. “I don’t want to see Nick Diaz that is just ripped. When he fought Robbie Lawler, I was so excited because I was like, ‘Man, he’s been back on the triathlons, and he looks even better than he did in his prime.’

“Then when he got to the octagon, he looked nothing like that person. He looked like a guy that was pushing 40, that hadn’t fought in many, many years, and I didn’t know if he still had that fight in him.”

Although Luque has lost three of his past four fights, Cormier still sees the once streaking contender as a stern test for Diaz. He worries that the former Strikeforce champion and UFC title challenger may tarnish his legacy if he doesn’t take Luque seriously and perform.

“Vicente Luque is thought to be on the decline,” Cormier said. “I kind of judged him based on how badly Joaquin Buckley beat him. But then now watching Joaquin Buckley do what he did to the kid that was 18-1 in St. Louis, doing what he did to Stephen Thompson, now I look back at Vicente Luque and wonder if I was too quick to judgment.

“Maybe I didn’t see how good Joaquin Buckley is as opposed to the state of Vicente Luque’s career. I still think that’s a lot for Nick Diaz. Nick Diaz struggled with Robbie Lawler, and Robbie Lawler was only one fight away from retirement. Vicente Luque is not going anywhere. It’s a tough fight. I think for Nick, though, he has to be really locked in if he wants to go out there and not embarrass himself.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Nick Diaz’s octagon return vs. Vicente Luque rebooked for UFC 310 in December

After UFC CEO Dana White expressed doubt about a return in 2024, Nick Diaz is back vs. Vicente Luque at UFC 310 in December.

After UFC CEO Dana White expressed doubt about getting a [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] fight back on the books this year, the beloved veteran has been rescheduled against [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] on the final numbered UFC event of 2024.

Diaz, a former Strikeforce champion and UFC title challenger, was originally slated to fight Luque in his first bout since September 2021 at UFC on ABC 7 in August. He withdrew due to travel issues, but now a new date is set for UFC 310, which goes down Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).

The first time Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) and Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) were scheduled, it was a five-round welterweight bout. This time it is set for three rounds in the 170-pound weight class. White announced the matchup as part of a slew of matchups for the card on Saturday.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DBCBgLSPhiZ/

Two people with knowledge of the situation verified the booking with MMA Junkie following an initial report from MMA Mania. The people requested anonymity because the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Diaz, older brother of Nate Diaz, hasn’t fought since losing to Robbie Lawler in 2021. That was also his first fight in six years. The 41-year-old is winless in his past four bouts, and hasn’t achieved a victory since battering B.J. Penn at UFC 137 in October 2011.

Luque is also looking to break out of a difficult stretch. The 32-year-old has dropped three of his past four octagon appearances, with his most bout being a TKO loss to Joaquin Buckley at UFC on ESPN 54 in March.

The latest UFC 310 lineup now includes:

  • Belal Muhammad vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov – for welterweight title
  • Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura – for flyweight title
  • Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
  • Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
  • Dominick Reyes vs. Anthony Smith
  • Virna Jandiroba vs. Tatiana Suarez
  • Clay Guida vs. Chase Hooper
  • Michael Chiesa vs. Max Griffin
  • Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque
  • Cody Durden vs. Joshua Van

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Vicente Luque hopes for quick rebooking with Nick Diaz; Dana White ‘not very’ confident it happens in 2024

Vicente Luque has a far higher degree of optimism about getting a new date on the books with Nick Diaz than that of UFC CEO Dana White.

[autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] has a far higher degree of optimism about getting a new date on the books with [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] than that of UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag].

Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) was scheduled to fight Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC on ABC 7 co-main event in Abu Dhabi unless less than two weeks out from the date UFC officials announced the matchup was off due to travel issues on Diaz’s side.

There has been little further information as to Diaz’s status for what would’ve been his first fight since a September 2021 loss to Robbie Lawler, and just his second appearance overall since January 2015. Luque talked to MMA Junkie during UFC 304 fight week in Manchester, England, and said he was disheartened by the postponement, but was confident it would be rescheduled.

“The buildup to it, I expected to have some kind of an issue with the weight or some kind of unexpected thing,” Luque told MMA Junkie. “But I didn’t think the fight was going to fall through. I was disappointed. I feel super ready, super excited to step in there and fight a legend like Nick. Hopefully we’re going to get it rescheduled for soon.

“We’re working on rescheduling the fight and I’m going to stay ready. If we can do it soon or maybe September, maybe August. … No word yet.”

It appears Luque could be waiting some time for that word to come through. When asked about Diaz’s situation at Saturday’s UFC 304 post-fight news conference, White told MMA Junkie that he has legitimate doubts it happens in 2024.

“I have no idea,” White said. “Not very (confident he fights this year).”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 7.

Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque off UFC Abu Dhabi due to ‘travel issue’; Shara Bullet added as co-main

Nick Diaz’s return to the UFC is on hold for now.

UFC fans will have to wait a bit longer to see [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] back in the cage.

Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) vs. [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) has been removed from the upcoming UFC on ABC 7 in Abu Dhabi due to a “travel issue,” the promotion announced Saturday during the UFC on ESPN 60 broadcast.

UFC commentator Brendan Fitzgerald said the promotion will reschedule the fight for later in the summer, though he did not specify a date. The travel issue was with Diaz, not Luque.

The welterweight bout was scheduled to be the card’s co-main event. The promotion has replaced it with a new booking: [autotag]Shara Magomedov[/autotag] (13-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) vs. [autotag]Michael Oleksiejczuk[/autotag] (19-8 MMA, 7-6 UFC).

Had the bout happened, it would’ve been the first for Diaz since September 2021 when he lost by third-round TKO to Robbie Lawler. That fight was Diaz’s first in four years, since a no contest vs. Anderson Silva.

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Luque would’ve looked to bounce back from a March loss to Joaquin Buckley. The defeat was his third in his most recent four fights.

Two fighters’ losses are two fighters’ gains, however. A rising star, Magomedov gets his biggest spot to date against the always gritty Oleksiejczuk.

Magomedov competed in June when he defeated Antonio Trocoli by third-round TKO. The victory moved him to 2-0 in the UFC, the banner under which he successfully debuted vs. Bruno Silva in October.

Oleksiejczuk could be fighting for his UFC career in this bout. Though his fights have been consistently exciting, the results have varied. Oleksiejczuk is 1-3 in his most recent four, including a submission loss to Kevin Holland in June.

Longtime Nick Diaz coach Cesar Gracie not on board with UFC Abu Dhabi fight vs. Vicente Luque

“It’s not the fight I would’ve made,” Cesar Gracie said of Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque.

[autotag]Cesar Gracie[/autotag] is not a fan of [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag]’s UFC return fight.

Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) takes on Vicente Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) Aug. 3 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The 40-year-old hasn’t competed since a TKO loss to Robbie Lawler at UFC 266 in September 2021, which was his first fight in more than six years.

Diaz’s longtime coach, Gracie, revealed that he isn’t a part of his training camp. He would have rather Diaz faced someone other than Luque.

“I’m really not involved in that fight,” Gracie told Submission Radio. “I’m going to be perfectly honest with you. That wasn’t my idea. It wasn’t a fight I would have had. Like if I was advising Nick, I wouldn’t have advised him to do that fight. It’s in Abu Dhabi. I wouldn’t advise to go fight overseas at this point, especially Luque is a very tough guy. You know Nick is a tough guy, but it just doesn’t make that much sense for me where Nick is at in his career.

“And I don’t know. It’s not the fight I would have made. I don’t even know what’s going on with that fight to be honest with you. I speak to Nick. I spoke to Nick today a little bit, and yeah, I don’t have any plans for that fight, to be honest with you. I don’t know what’s going to happen with that one to be honest with you.”

According to DraftKings, Diaz is a +340 underdog vs. Luque, who’s a -440 favorite. Gracie is even skeptical that Diaz makes the fight on Aug. 3.

“I haven’t been part of his training for this one. I’m just not,” Gracie said. “We talk every day, and I don’t know what’s going to happen with that, to be honest with you. I don’t. It’s a tossup what’s going to happen. And like, again, I think the camp, our camp in general, we haven’t been as involved like we are with other stuff.

“And so I don’t know what Nick is doing. I know he’s lost a lot of weight and everything, but I don’t really see him training with fighters. And I don’t know what’s going on with that fight.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 7.

Nate Diaz excited for brother Nick Diaz’s UFC return vs. Vicente Luque: ‘I don’t think there’s anybody better’

The Diaz brothers are both active in fighting once again, and Nate is excited to see what Nick will do against Vicente Luque.

Three years after his last fight, [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] has a UFC bout on the books, and his brother [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag] is excited to see his favorite fighter back in action.

Nick is scheduled to step back into the UFC’s octagon on Aug. 3 for a welterweight co-main bout against Vicente Luque at UFC on ABC 7 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Seeing his brother fly across the globe for a scrap is something that tickled his younger brother Nate.

“He’s going to go to f*cking Saudi Arabia,” Diaz told MMA Junkie with a laugh. “F*ck, huh?”

It’s been a long time since the Diaz brothers were active fighters together.

Nate, who has been regularly active over the years, is scheduled to compete in a boxing match against Jorge Masvidal on Saturday in Anaheim, Calif., in a rematch from their inaugural BMF title bout at UFC 244. It will be the third time the younger sibling has competed since Nick has been on the sidelines.

The one-year elder was last in action at UFC 266 in September 2021 in a TKO loss in a middleweight bout against former welterweight champion Robbie Lawler. It was Nick’s first fight since 2015, and the fourth consecutive appearance in which he failed to record a win.

With some time off from fighting, Nate is expecting his brother to return in a big way against Luque, who has also struggled to produce positive results as of late, dropping three of his last four.

“Luque’s a fighter, he’ll come to fight,” Diaz said. “And you guys know Nick, so that’s what that is. You’re going to have a couple of animals in there. I don’t think there’s anybody better than Nick, so we’ll see what happens.”

The brothers have been working in separate camps in preparation for their fights. With Nate focused solely on the sweet science of boxing at home in California, Nick has been mixing the martial arts in Texas. However, according to Nate, the plan is to get together after his fight this weekend to finalize training and the gameplan for his brother’s big return to the cage.

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Video: Did UFC do right with Nick Diaz and Tony Ferguson return fights?

Were Nick Diaz and Tony Ferguson properly matched up for their UFC return fights? We discuss on “Spinning Back Clique.”

On the latest episode of “Spinning Back Clique,” the panel reacts to the return fights booked for [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] and [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag].

The two MMA veterans are set to compete on Aug. 3 at UFC on ABC 7 in Abu Dhabi. Diaz takes on Vicente Luque, and Ferguson takes on Michael Chiesa. Were Diaz and Ferguson better off fighting each other? How do we feel about the matchmaking?

MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Nolan King, Mike Bohn and host Gorgeous George discuss the latest additions of UFC on ABC 7.

Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.

https://youtube.com/live/HlprD38OBpI

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Vicente Luque recounts surprising UFC on ESPN 7 offer to fight Diaz: ‘Are you sure it’s Nick or is it Nate?’

Vicente Luque had to double check to make sure he was fighting Nick Diaz and not Nate Diaz at UFC on ESPN 7.

Fans weren’t the only ones surprised to see [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag] book a fight. His upcoming opponent [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] was also caught off guard.

Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC), a long time welterweight contender, is scheduled to welcome back Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) in a five-round fight Aug. 3 at UFC on ABC 7 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. Diaz, now 40 and with almost three years of inactivity, wasn’t on Luque’s radar.

“I remember when (my manager) Ali (Abdelaziz) called and said, ‘Hey, we got a fight,'” Luque told MMA Junkie Radio. “I wanted to fight at the end of July or beginning of August, so he said we got Aug. 3 and that it was going to be in Abu Dhabi.

“I said, ‘OK, that’s going to be a different place I never fought,’ and he threw the name out there, Nick Diaz. I was like, ‘Are you sure it’s Nick or is it Nate you’re talking about?’ He said, ‘No, it’s Nick. It’s really Nick.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, let’s go.’ It’s going to be an awesome fight. In my mind, Fight of the Night is definitely up for grabs.”

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Diaz was one of the biggest stars in MMA in the 2010s. He’s a former Strikeforce champion and ex-UFC title challenger. He and his younger brother Nate Diaz have been part of some of the MMA’s biggest fights.

For Luque, it’s a dream come true to be fighting Diaz.

“Nick is a guy that I always wanted to fight before I got into the UFC,” Luque said. “That was 2014, 2013, 2012, that’s when I was making my way to the UFC and I watched a lot of Nick fights. It was amazing to watch him fight GSP, Carlos Condit, B.J. Penn, and even Anderson Silva. He’s fought all those guys that were legendary, and for me, he’s a guy I always wanted to fight.

“I didn’t think at this point I was going to fight him anymore, but now I do get to fight him. So for me, it was very exciting to get this fight. He’s not in the rankings, but man, it’s Nick Diaz. That’s a big fight regardless. It’s a good fight to get back to my winning ways and set me up for great things after that.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 7.