Nate Diaz

By FCF Staff

Nate Diaz has made it clear that he won’t return to the Octagon unless there’s a lot of money on the table, but Dana White claims the fighter needs to put in some work first.

Diaz hasn’t fought since his rematch with Conor McGregor last August, which was one of the promotion’s top selling pay-per-view card to date. Earlier this week, Diaz reported on “The MMA Hour” that he turned down a fight with Tony Ferguson, due to “circumstances”. Since then, White spoke with Yahoo Sports, and the UFC President confirmed that Diaz has turned down a chance to face Ferguson for an interim, 155 title.

White also said this:

“Whatever his deal is, he’s got a pretty good deal,” White said . “I mean, listen, at the end of the day, what is Diaz worth without Conor McGregor? I don’t know. The kid isn’t in a position for pay-per-view or any of that type of [stuff]. But this [a fight with Ferguson] could put him in a position. If he fought Tony Ferguson, it would be for the interim title.

“Obviously, if you held the interim title, you would get a piece of the pay-per-view. Diaz has to put himself in a position to make the pay-per-view money.”

Diaz’s first bout with McGregor, which took place in March, 2016, set a new record for PPV sales, before that was broken at UFC 202.