Nick Diaz is back. The MMA veteran is set to make his return to the sport at UFC 266 on Sept. 25 against Robbie Lawler as the co-main event, UFC president Dana White told Yahoo Sports. Diaz's attorney also confirmed the news to ESPN.
The bout is expected to be a five-round, non-title bout. It will be just the second of its kind under the UFC banner, the first of which being Nick's younger brother Nate taking on Leon Edwards at UFC 263 in June.
The two first met all the way back in 2004 at UFC 47 with Diaz scoring a second-round knockout. Though he never claimed UFC gold at 170 pounds, Diaz saw major success in other promotions. He won the WEC title in 2003 and later the Strikeforce title in 2010, which he defended three times.
In his most recent run with UFC, Diaz was more known for inactivity, however. The fan favorite fought just three times between 2012 and 2015 as he dealt with suspensions for marijuana. He has had three fight results overturned in his career for the drug, including being levied a five-year suspension in 2015 after testing positive following a decision loss to Anderson Silva. Though it was later reduced to 18 months, Diaz was never able to get back in the Octagon.
Lawler, on the other hand, went on to find success at the championship level in UFC. He earned the welterweight title in 2014 and defended the title twice before a TKO loss to Tyron Woodley. He enters the bout with Diaz on a four-fight losing streak that dates back to 2017.
