CONTACTABOUTFACEBOOKTWITTERPODCAST IPHONE APPANDROID APPAMAZON APPWINDOWS APPRSS
NEW FORUM

GOT THE MMATORCH APP YET?
iPhone & iPad
Android
Kindle Fire
Windows Phone
MMATORCH IPHONE APP

MMATORCH

All the MMA News • Plus Intelligent, Brilliant, Addictive Points of View!
Independently Covering MMA Since 1993 • No Big Corporate Bosses

Penick's Take
PENICK: Examining the UFC's Options For Nick Diaz Upon His Return From Suspension
Oct 30, 2012 - 7:55:06 PM
PENICK: Examining the UFC's Options For Nick Diaz Upon His Return From Suspension
DISCUSS ALL THIS IN OUR NEW MMATORCH FORUM
...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!



Penick_staff_pic_wide.jpg


By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

When Nick Diaz returns from his year-long suspension in February of 2013, the welterweight division will be a bit more fleshed out than when he last fought. UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre and Interim Champ Carlos Condit will square off next month to determine the Undisputed UFC Welterweight Champion, Martin Kampmann and Johny Hendricks will battle in a possible No. 1 contender bout, and several others will be getting themselves in line behind them.

Where does that leave Diaz? Well, that's a question with a number of possibilities, and it's going to depend upon the outcomes of the fights in place as well as other scenarios that could come into play. For starters:

If Georges St-Pierre defeats Carlos Condit...

The UFC has three options. 1) GSP fights Anderson Silva in a much talked about super fight. 2) GSP fights the Kampmann-Hendricks winner in the next UFC Title bout. 3) The UFC books Nick Diaz's return against Georges St-Pierre for the title.

The third option is the longest shot for Diaz's next fight, but it's not entirely out of the realm of possibility. The UFC wanted a GSP-Diaz fight from the time they brought him into the organization, having that fight not take place because of Diaz's missed press conferences prior to UFC 137 and GSP's injuries prior to UFC 143 may be enough to have them take advantage of timing at that stage.

Again, it's the least likely option to discuss here, but it certainly could be possible. If St-Pierre fights Silva in his next bout, that opens up a few lines of discussion for Diaz's next fight as well. First amongst them would be a rematch with Condit. The first fight was extremely close, and snapped a significant unbeaten streak for the former Strikeforce Welterweight Champion. It's a fight the UFC can definitely sell upon his return, and a fight that could make a lot of sense. If St-Pierre doesn't fight Anderson Silva after defeating Condit, and instead fights the Kampmann-Hendricks winner, then Diaz-Condit is definitely a very realistic option. Things are changed up a bit, though, if the fight goes differently and:

Carlos Condit defeats Georges St-Pierre

If Condit captures the Undisputed Welterweight Championship, then a fight between GSP and Diaz becomes a more realistic possibility. GSP may be in line for an immediate rematch, which would put a damper on that. If that's the case, Diaz against the Kampmann-Hendricks winner in a number one contender fight would be the logical move. But if an immediate rematch isn't in line, the Diaz-GSP fight fans have wanted to see for some time is the fight that could make the most sense.

The other possibility for GSP in a loss is to still take on Silva in a super fight, but that's not necessarily a realistic option if he's not the Champ, as the super fight may lose some of its appeal. Either way, those four names are the likeliest of potential opponents for Diaz's return. However, if the UFC has different ideas, there are at least three other names who would make for good fights and/or tough challenges to advance Diaz or the victors up the ranks in the division. Those options are:

Jon Fitch

The one time Welterweight Title challenger is coming off a highly impressive win over Erick Silva, and wants to move back towards the top end of the division. Though his striking game isn't amongst the best in the division, and he's prone to getting hit in fights, he's also one of the premiere grapplers at 170 lbs. Diaz's takedown defense has never been his strongest suit, so the fight itself would be a very intriguing clash of styles.

Josh Koscheck

Fitch's former AKA teammate put his own name into the hat for a fight with Diaz, claiming Diaz's trainer Cesar Gracie made the call out for a Super Bowl weekend encounter. That's not a likely spot for his return given his suspension runs through two days after that event in Las Vegas, but a fight with Koscheck could still be an interesting option. He's a better striker than Fitch, and he's a good wrestler in his own right. Considering Diaz will have been out of action a year at that point, it's a fight a little lower down the ladder that could be less intense a challenge as some of the other possibilities.

Jake Ellenberger

Fresh off a win over Jay Hieron to bounce himself back from a loss to Kampmann, Ellenberger's the other name that could make sense for Diaz. He's not as big a name as either Koscheck or Fitch, but if the UFC doesn't go any of the previously named routes for Diaz's next bout, Ellenberger's the best of the rest.

Ultimately, we have to see how UFC 154 plays out before we can get a real sense of what route the UFC wants to go. But there isn't really a shortage of options for the organization once those fights take place next month. Diaz's place in the welterweight hierarchy is going to depend upon what the UFC feels his worth is after a year out of action and a loss to Condit. The higher they feel he still is, the better matchup he's going to attract, and depending on what happens with Condit and GSP and afterward, he'll be able to re-implement himself into the mix.


Discuss this editorial on the MMATorch forums: CLICK HERE


DON'T GO YET... WE SUGGEST THESE MMATORCH ARTICLES, TOO!
UFC 195 PREVIEW: Penick's main card preview and fight picks for "Lawler vs. Condit" event
Penick's 2015 MMA Awards: "Submission of the Year" - Ronda Rousey's inverted armbar over Cat Zingano at UFC 184
Penick's 2015 MMA Awards: "KO of the Year" - Holly Holm's head kick over Ronda Rousey at UFC 193

comments powered by Disqus
HERE ARE EVEN MORE ARTICLES THAT MIGHT INTEREST YOU

SELECT ARTICLES BY CATEGORY
SEARCH MMATORCH BY KEYWORD


MMATORCH CALENDAR OF EVENTS
CLICK HERE FOR LIST OF UPCOMING MMA EVENTS
CLICK TO SEE A UFC VIDEO BELOW

ARTICLES OF INTEREST ELSEWHERE
MMATORCH POLL - VOTE NOW!

Will T.J. Dillashaw and Urijah Faber eventually fight?
 
pollcode.com free polls

Do you think Daniel Cormier will defeat returning Jon Jones to legitimize UFC Light Heavyweight Title reign?
 
pollcode.com free polls

VOTE IN OR SEE RESULTS OF PREVIOUS POLLS

MMATORCH WEEKLY LIVECAST
Listen to the weekly MMATORCH LIVECAST on Blog Talk Radio


MMATORCH STAFF

EDITORS:

Wade Keller, supervising editor
(mmatorch@gmail.com)

Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)

STAFF COLUMNISTS:

Shawn Ennis - Jason Amadi
Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey


Interested in joining MMATorch's writing team? Send idea for a theme to your column (for Specialist section) or area of interest (i.e. TV Reporter) along with a sample of writing to mmatorch@gmail.com.

MORE MMA SITES
CONTACTABOUTFACEBOOKTWITTERPODCAST IPHONE APPANDROID APPAMAZON APPWINDOWS APPRSS
THE TORCH: #1 IN COMBAT ENTERTAINMENT COVERAGE | © 1999-2013 TDH Communications Inc. • All rights reserved -- PRIVACY POLICY