Dana White: Nick Diaz Shouldn’t Fight Again After Comeback at UFC 266

While Nick Diaz gave a game effort at UFC 266, it wasn’t a vintage performance from the Stockton, Calif., native.

More than six years since his last Octagon appearance, Diaz faced Robbie Lawler in a rematch on Oct. 25 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where he suffered a TKO defeat when he declined to continue 44 seconds into the third round of their middleweight bout.

While Diaz was able to unleash some of his renowned multi-punch combinations, he fatigued badly down the stretch — something that would have been unheard of in years past — which led to him asking out of the fight in the final stanza. In an interview with ESPN, UFC president Dana White said he’d prefer not to see Diaz step into the Octagon again.

“Regardless of how good he looked or what he did after such a huge layoff, I don’t think Nick should fight,” White said. “It’s not that I was in favor of it. He’s a grown man and can do whatever he wants to do. I just don’t think that Nick does it because he loves it. I think Nick does it because he has to do it. I don’t know, man. People always ask me, ‘What’s the key to success?’ It’s all about being happy and doing what you love.”

In the past, Diaz has made it apparent that he doesn’t necessarily enjoy fighting, and that mentality is clear to someone like White.

“When I always talk about the people who sit in bumper-to-bumper traffic and go to a job they hate, that’s what I feel like with Nick Diaz when he’s getting ready for a fight,” White said. “He’s in bumper-to-bumper traffic going to a job that he doesn’t love at all. It’s actually fascinating. But for a guy that’s been off as long as he has, nothing but respect for Nick.”

It’s unclear whether Diaz is truly interested in fighting again after UFC 266. In a post-fight interview that night, he questioned the matchmaking behind the Lawler matchup but otherwise seemed content with how things played out.

“I don’t know how this fight got set up,” Diaz said then . “I had a whole switch up in my management setup, the way that the fight got set up. It was just a bum rap.

“But no excuses, I had it coming, he was in great shape. I knew I was leaking [blood] here so I didn’t want to make too much of a mess. I’m glad to be back. I’m glad to put on a show.”