Don't Expect to See Nick Diaz vs. Michael Bisping Anytime Soon

Could a UFC middleweight bout between Michael Bisping, who is sitting on the sidelines with an injury, and Nick Diaz, who is sitting on the sidelines in pseudo-retirement, actually happen?

It could… in a perfect world.

But the world is far from perfect, and a bout between the two brash fighters appears a long way from happening.

Speculation about the possibility of the bout first surfaced when UFC 166 fighter Gilbert Melendez said he thought his teammate, Diaz, would fight again if the right fight was offered. One possible rumored scenario would see Diaz, who usually fights at welterweight, come back for a fight in the middleweight division.

After Melendez’s comment, Bisping injected himself into the conversation, tweeting, “If Diaz wants a fight at 185 I would happily welcome him to the division.”

Even though Bisping is currently nursing a detached retina back to healthy status, and Diaz has been M.I.A. since losing to Georges St-Pierre in March of this year, Bisping’s offer immediately sent the Twitterverse into a tantalizing tizzy.

It’s a fight that piqued nearly every fight fan’s interest, including UFC president Dana White.

“I love that fight,” said White in a meeting with the UFC 166 media on Thursday in Houston.

As excited as he sounded, White was quick to deflate any hopes of the fight coming together anytime soon.

“Everything I hear from Nick Diaz is that he doesn't want to fight.”

The highest-profile fighting situation Diaz has been in since the St-Pierre fight in March has been launching his own fight promotion, WAR MMA. The promotion has thus far held one event, with no details yet announced for any future promotions.

As for actually stepping back into the Octagon, Diaz remains mum.

MMAWeekly.com’s attempts for comment from Diaz and his camp went unanswered at the time of publication.

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