Nick Diaz’s drug test results have affected the welterweight division tremendously.
The news might have not surprised most fans but it has left the Nevada State Athletic Commission and UFC management in an awkward position, including UFC President Dana White, who at this time is likely unsure on how to handle the remainder of Diaz’s tenure in the UFC.
Diaz is one of the most polarizing figures in the UFC, and while this likely is detrimental to his career, no other person is impacted more by this incident than UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre.
The champion intended on facing Diaz before a serious knee injury forced him out of the main event at UFC 143, allowing Carlos Condit to step in. The winner would be expected to meet St. Pierre later that year but it wasn’t the exact opponent that the Saint Isadore, Quebec native was expecting, as Condit defeated Diaz via unanimous decision in a five round interim title bout.
While Condit will surely provide a challenge to the champion, ultimately it was a long-awaited bout with Diaz that motivated St. Pierre to put on a inspiring performance and attempt to beat one of the biggest adversaries in his career.
There a few challenges left for St. Pierre at 170 pounds and a title bout against Diaz would have been the one opponent to potentially test him.
But now it feels more like a distant memory and the chances of ever witnessing a matchup between them is highly doubtful.
St. Pierre will still continue to dominate the welterweight division and life will go on as he comfortably sits atop his weight class for the foreseeable future. However, fans will always ponder on Diaz’s missed opportunity and debate on a bout that would of solidified both fighters’ legacies as two of the greatest of all-time.
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