Conor McGregor: Coach reveals why Nate Diaz won't be welcoming Notorious back to the cage
CONOR MCGREGOR's striking coach Owen Roddy has revealed he'd love to see Nate Diaz welcome 'The Notorious' back to the Octagon but has admitted the fight doesn't make sense at this moment in time.
McGregor and Diaz, 29 and 33 respectively took part in two of the most unforgettable fights in recent UFC history in 2016.
Diaz won the pair's first encounter - which took place at UFC 196 - on 11 days notice, submitting the then-featherweight champion via a second-round rear-naked choke.
McGregor avenged the sole loss of his UFC career a few months later at UFC 202, defeating the youngest Diaz brother via majority decision.
Ever since the pair's epic second encounter, many fight fans have been itching to see the duo take part in a series decider, though the bout has not yet come to fruition.
Amongst that group is Roddy, who has on several occasions admitted he loves the drama and the build-up to fights with Diaz.
But as much as he wants to see McGregor vs Diaz 3, Roddy admits a fight with new lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is the bout to make at this moment in time.
“I’d love to see [the Diaz] fight again — a trilogy fight would be awesome,” Roddy told Mike Sheridan at a Q&A at SBG Charlestown on Saturday morning.
“But I always [think about] what’s getting the most attention and the Khabib fight seems to be brewing up nicely. The fans are really getting behind it.
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I’d love to see [the Diaz] fight again — a trilogy fight would be awesome
“I never thought the Mayweather fight was going to happen, but when the fans got behind it and then when Mayweather started talking you knew it was going to happen.”
Diaz, 19-11, hasn’t set foot inside the Octagon since suffering a majority decision loss to McGregor, a defeat he vehemently contested.
McGregor, meanwhile, hasn’t fought in mixed martial arts since claiming the lightweight title 19 months ago in the main event of UFC 205, a card where he became the promotion’s first simultaneous two-weight world champion.
The Irishman’s long-awaited comeback fight, which is expected to be against his successor at the summit of the lightweight division, is currently in the works.
“I’m going to defend my title, Inshallah (god willing), this year,” the UFC’s lightweight champion said during a Live Raise Broadcast. “This year, I want to defend my title.
“About opponents, I don’t know, to be honest. I don’t know. But the UFC is working on fight, me versus Conor.”