No, it’s not going to be Floyd Mayweather Jr, but the highly anticipated rematch will be taking place this summer. Nate Diaz shocked the mixed martial arts world earlier this year when he handed UFC golden boy Conor McGregor his first loss inside the Octagon. Diaz had originally stepped in as an injury replacement for UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos on 11 days’ notice. Prior to the loss, McGregor had taken the UFC by storm, winning his first seven bouts, earning six knockouts in the process including an incredibly 13 second victory over then-champion Jose Aldo last December to capture the featherweight belt. Diaz, on the other hand, was the winner of The Ultimate Fighter season five and had experienced an up-and-down UFC career, earning a title shot in 2012, but failing to reach the top of the promotion. The victory over McGregor instantly made him a top contender once again. The rematch was originally planned for the main event of UFC 200, but contract negotiations and media obligations for McGregor ended up forcing the Irish superstar out of the bout. Things weren’t looking good that the fight would ever take place but thankfully, cooler heads have prevailed as it was announced during UFC 199 that Diaz will take on McGregor again in the main event of UFC 202 in August. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas had this to say about the rematch:
Diaz took McGregor’s best shots in their UFC 196 main event, weathering the early storm before hurting McGregor and finishing him via submission in the second round. Before the rematch was pulled from UFC 200, Diaz opened as a +140 underdog and the betting public came in on the Stockton native. The closing line was -135 for McGregor to +115 for Diaz. Diaz took the original fight on 11 days’ notice. With distractions out of the way and a full training camp to prepare, both fighters will be more familiar with each other and we can expect a more disciplined human chess match this time around. Diaz’s confidence will be higher now, but McGregor also knows he was doing serious damage in the first round before slowing down. All that aside, McGregor is still the most popular male fighter on the roster and he should have plenty of support from the betting public. McGregor is still going to open as the -130 betting favorite, but Diaz is getting more respect this time, opening at even money +100.
The lines for the rumored match-up opened via Several Bookmakers just moments ago. Without further ado: ————————————————————- UFC 202 – Welterweight 5 rounds – location: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas – August 20, 2016 Nate Diaz +100 Conor McGregor -130 Over 2.5 +100 Under 2.5 -130 —————————————————— Click below to bet the fight now! 