UFC welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev seemingly thinks that Nate Diaz should count himself lucky that their possible matchup didn’t come together.
Diaz, an MMA veteran who has competed inside the Octagon since winning The Ultimate Fighter 5 lightweight tournament in 2007, has been frantically searching for an opponent in order to fight out his active UFC contract.
The Stockton native, who recently branded himself a “hostage” for the UFC, has brought up many potential opponents. While Dustin Poirier drew most of his attention earlier in the year, rising star Chimaev took the mantle in more recent months
Having previously dismissed the idea of facing “Borz” late last year, Diaz had a change of heart this time, even suggesting that he’d accepted an offer from the UFC to face the Chechen-born Swede.
But despite his reputation as a ‘smesh anyone, anywhere, at any time’ character, Diaz claims that Chimaev turned down the chance to be his final opponent.
While he did little to dispute that suggestion in a recent Twitter post, Chimaev did take the time to jibe at Diaz with a meme.
Chimaev Suggests UFC Was Sending Diaz To His Grave
Reacting to Diaz’s revelations, which came during a recent interview with renowned reporter Ariel Helwani, Chimaev posted a SpongeBob SquarePants-related meme on Twitter.
The caption focused on the former WEC title challenger’s request to either be handed a final opponent or be released from his deal so that he can pursue ventures outside the Octagon. Noting that the UFC’s response was to offer himself as a possible rival, Chimaev likened his position opposite Diaz as a grave for the Stockton native.
Talk of a potential Diaz vs. Chimaev bout picked up following the matchmaking leak in May, which showed the pairing as part of the UFC 276 card earlier this month.
While “Borz” appeared to respond positively to the discussion, even tweeting out, “Let’s fight skinny” to Diaz, nothing ultimately came of the reports.
Should Khamzat Chimaev be Nate Diaz’s final opponent in the UFC?