The people’s main event is THE main event, as Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal will headline UFC 244 in New York this November.
With negotiations for Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington reportedly hitting a snag, UFC 244 suddenly has a rather stunning — and fan friendly — main event. On Saturday, UFC President Dana White revealed to ESPN that Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz would headline the card.
No title, no interim belt, just a couple of old school fighters looking to throw down. In what could very well be one of the biggest fights of the year.
“It is the fight that the fans wanted to see. Nate Diaz called out [Jorge] Masvidal after his win over [Anthony] Pettis,” White told ESPN. “Everybody’s been talking about it. People have been hitting me up on social media telling me to get this done. I can now announce the fight is done.”
“It will be the main event,” White also confirmed. “Five rounds of Diaz vs. Masvidal at Madison Square Garden.”
While Diaz vs. Masvidal is not a title fight, it’s a showdown for the ‘Bad Motherf*cker’ title. At least, that’s the term the fights have adopted. “I’m going to put together a BMF belt,” White quipped. He added that the fight was too big to be a fight night, and promised that he’d stack the UFC 244 card with ‘killer fights.’
Diaz (20–11) returned from a three year exile from the UFC, at least partially self-imposed, when he fought Pettis at UFC 241 last month. The unanimous decision win over the former lightweight champ, at welterweight, immediately thrust the younger Diaz back in the spotlight.
Masvidal (34–13), of course, has been red hot since his flying knee knockout of Ben Askren at UFC 239 in July. Although a fight with rival Leon Edwards was sounding like a possibility, Masvidal vs. Diaz is the fight the fans wanted the second Diaz called for it.
It’s the fight they’re getting. UFC 244 takes place November 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
