“If Nick wants to throw down I’m more than willing to throw down”.
Jorge Masvidal will be taking some time to recover following his brutal knockout loss to Kamaru Usman at UFC 261, but the ‘BMF’ champ is open to fight Nick Diaz upon his return.
Diaz’ name came up at the UFC 261 post-fight presser in Jacksonville, Florida, after Dana White confirmed that the former Strikeforce welterweight champ will be making a comeback after a six-year hiatus.
Masvidal already holds a stoppage win over younger brother Nate and says it would be an honor to ‘throw down’ with Nick too.
“Definitely, Nick is a stud,” Masvidal told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani (h/t Jordan Ellis of Low Kick MMA). “If Nick wants to throw down I’m more than willing to throw down. Like I said, I’m going to do it on my time, I’m not taking short-notice fights, no matter who it is.
“I’m not going to do that right now. But, if Nick does want to fight towards the end of this year, what can I say, I’m here. You want to do right for your little brother?
“Let’s go. I heard a lot of interviews that he wasn’t too keen on what I did to his little brother. Neither would I,” Masvidal added.
“I feel for Nick in that situation. I know what I’d wanna do if somebody did that to my little brother. So, let’s go.”
Diaz, now 37, hasn’t fought since his controversial NC against Anderson Silva at UFC 183. The bout was initially declared a victory for Silva but was overturned to a No Contest after ‘The Spider’ tested positive for steroids. Diaz also tested positive for marijuana metabolites and was suspended for 18 months; he hasn’t won a fight since his 2011 victory over BJ Penn at UFC 137.