Rumor: Nate Diaz Begins Training For UFC Return

One of the UFC’s most polarizing fan favorites could be returning to the Octagon soon. It’s only a rumor at this point, but a post surfaced on Instagram today from Nate Diaz’ strength and conditioning coach Jose Garcia (via BJ Penn) telling fans to be ready because Diaz was supposedly back in training camp. The […]

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One of the UFC’s most polarizing fan favorites could be returning to the Octagon soon.

It’s only a rumor at this point, but a post surfaced on Instagram today from Nate Diaz’ strength and conditioning coach Jose Garcia (via BJ Penn) telling fans to be ready because Diaz was supposedly back in training camp.

The post was quickly deleted, but check it out right here:

Speculation naturally ran rampant after the photo was seen earlier today, with fans online getting rumors swirling that Diaz would be fighting interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson at December 30’s UFC 219 from Las Vegas.

Even further rumors stated the UFC had stripped McGregor of the lightweight title and Diaz would be fighting Ferguson for the official unified championship.

None of that has been confirmed and is all speculation at this point. What is strange, however, is that Diaz’ strength coach would post such a clear statement of his return online and quickly delete it.

Maybe he got overexcited at news that was only potential at the time and was instructed to take it down, or maybe he misinterpreted what he had heard. Either way, the MMA world is abuzz with the potential that Diaz may finally return to the Octagon.

Stay tuned.

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Robert Follis, Head Coach at Xtreme Couture, Parts Ways with Gym

Fighters and their fights rightfully dominate the MMA news cycle. 
It’s not often their coaches make headlines unless they’re being interviewed during fight week about the game plan for one of their fighters. But when one of the top coaches in the…

Fighters and their fights rightfully dominate the MMA news cycle. 

It’s not often their coaches make headlines unless they’re being interviewed during fight week about the game plan for one of their fighters. But when one of the top coaches in the sport leaves the gym they’ve been affiliated with for years, it’s certainly newsworthy. 

Veteran MMA coach Robert Follis parted ways with Xtreme Couture, the Las Vegas-based MMA gym owned by UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture, on Monday. He notified Bleacher Report by phone Tuesday. 

Follis ran daily MMA and grappling classes for the professional fighters at the gym along with serving as head coach for some of its top fighters like Kevin Lee, Bryan Caraway and Tim Elliott, as well as former women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate.

Follis was with the gym for just over four years. Prior to his time at Xtreme Couture, he was the head coach and co-owner of Team Quest in Portland, Oregon. 

“I’d like to thank Randy [Couture] for bringing me on when the gym was going through some struggles. Having the opportunity to build it back up to a world-class level has been one of the great experiences of my professional career,” Follis said in a statement to Bleacher Report. “At the time there was not a Brazilian jiu-jitsu program in place for non-fighters to come in for, so to see it take off and flourish was a great accomplishment. I’m really excited about some big possibilities that are currently sitting in front of me and I’m looking forward to watching these things unfold soon. I’m so grateful to everyone that partnered with me over the years to get the gym and the Brazilian jiu-jitsu program to where it is.” 

Given Follis’ track record thus far, he’ll no doubt find success in whatever venture he chooses next.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Breaking: Conor McGregor Won’t Return To UFC Without Promoter’s Stake

With the MMA world focused on this weekend’s (Sat., November 4, 2017) UFC 217 from New York City, the hottest topics in the fight game are still when and against whom UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor will set foot back into the Octagon. McGregor teased a title defense against interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson during […]

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With the MMA world focused on this weekend’s (Sat., November 4, 2017) UFC 217 from New York City, the hottest topics in the fight game are still when and against whom UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor will set foot back into the Octagon.

McGregor teased a title defense against interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson during a recent Q&A in his native Dublin, but also left the door open for a potential trilogy bout with rival Nate Diaz or any number of potential boxing crossover fights.

That left his UFC return uncertain at best, but based on what he revealed during a short Q&A session surrounding the debut of the documentary film about his life, there’s a much bigger topic that has to be hashed out before “The Notorious” fights for the UFC again. According to MMA Junkie’s Chamatkar Sandhu, McGregor revealed he will not fight until he has a promoter’s stake:

That may not come as a surprise to many, as during a down 2017 without him in the actual UFC, it’s clear the promotion needs him, perhaps much more than he needs them. If he does indeed get the promoter’s stake in the company that he very well may deserve, he’d like to get a fight booked in Ireland:

Sandhu clarified that the Q&A session was a short one, but the main takeaways were that the UFC was understandably trying to get McGregor back into the octagon before year’s end to bolster a sinking bottom line, and McGregor wouldn’t be playing ball without part ownership of his next fight:

So McGregor has reportedly drawn a proverbial line in the sand for new UFC owners Endeavor (formerly WME-IMG), and after they let him take the entirety of 2017 off MMA to fight Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a boxing ring, they most likely aren’t going to be too happy about the position he’s now put them in.

They also don’t seem like people who like to be pushed around, even by the biggest star in MMA.

Should the UFC give in and grant McGregor his promoter’s stake, or is he getting too big for his own good?

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Conor McGregor Reveals Plans For Next Opponent

UFC 217 may be taking place this weekend (Sat., November 4, 2017) from New York, but much of the focus of the MMA world still remains on just whom lightweight champion Conor McGregor will face in his awaited Octagon return. Today (Tues., October 31, 2017) we may have some direct insight into his plans, as […]

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UFC 217 may be taking place this weekend (Sat., November 4, 2017) from New York, but much of the focus of the MMA world still remains on just whom lightweight champion Conor McGregor will face in his awaited Octagon return.

Today (Tues., October 31, 2017) we may have some direct insight into his plans, as McGregor revealed to Ireland’s entertainment.ie (via MMA Fighting) that interim lightweight champ Tony Ferguson, the hardcore MMA community’s overwhelming choice for his next bout, is the logical next choice for him:

“I’ve got everyone clawing at me, trying to get at me, and that’s from multiple sports, multiple organizations, multiple everything. It’s been like that for a long, long time, I feel, so it’s just another day for me. I know there are many contenders in the UFC. There are many boxing contenders as well. What interests me is certainly a UFC bout, certainly a defense of my lightweight title. There is a fighter with the interim lightweight belt. I feel that will be next. We’ll see how negotiations go.”

McGregor has yet to participate in an official title defense since first winning the UFC featherweight title from Jose Aldo at December 2015’s UFC 194, after which he engaged in his now-legendary rivalry with fan favorite Nate Diaz before winning the lightweight title from Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 last November, after which he was stripped of the 145-pound belt.

He’s been out of action for the entirety of 2017 thus far after meeting Floyd Mayweather in a boxing match August 26.

The other frontrunner for his next fight is his trilogy bout with Diaz, a fight that has been losing steam as discussions of the Ferguson match-up gain momentum. McGregor acknowledged that was still a possibility, however, just like one of several potential boxing crossover matches:

“The Diaz trilogy is also there,” McGregor said. “I can defend my belt against Nate. Maybe we can persuade one of these boxing opponents to step into the Octagon, or there’s also boxing bouts as well. So, there’s so many options. I feel to legitimize the belt — there’s an interim champion, I’m the unified champion — I feel that will be next. We are currently in contract negotiations, and we’ll see where it goes.”

So ‘The Notorious’s’ plans remain wide open, even if Ferguson remains the frontrunner. Whom do you think he should return to face?

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Quote: Conor McGregor Could Be Better Than Tony Ferguson On The Ground

With the MMA world awaiting UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor’s UFC return, the general consensus is that the polarizing Irishman will face interim champion Tony Ferguson when he does set foot back in the cage. The initial thought was that the UFC would book McGregor’s foregone conclusion of a trilogy bout with Nate Diaz, but […]

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With the MMA world awaiting UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor’s UFC return, the general consensus is that the polarizing Irishman will face interim champion Tony Ferguson when he does set foot back in the cage.

The initial thought was that the UFC would book McGregor’s foregone conclusion of a trilogy bout with Nate Diaz, but fan interest in terms of a meritocracy standpoint – at least in the minds of hardcore MMA fans – has seemingly shifted that focus to a bout with “El Cucuy.”

With much of the MMA world screaming for McGregor to finally defend one of his titles, even ‘The Notorious’ himself has admitted it’s time to “legitimize the rankings,” which suggests a bout with Ferguson is next up for the UFC’s biggest superstar. So with that match seemingly on the horizon, discussion about the fight’s outcome is beginning to surface in the fight world.

That was the case when McGregor’s training partner and Brazilian jiu-jitsu phenom Dillon Danis met up with Submission Radio (via Bloody Elbow) recently, where the outspoken grappler revealed his thoughts that McGregor would match or even surpass Ferguson on the ground despite the interim champion’s stellar reputation for finishing fights by submission:

“I don’t know what people judge that of off. I don’t know why they would say he has a superior advantage on the ground or stuff like that. People don’t even know what Conor’s Jiu Jitsu is like.

“So, with me training with Conor so much in his Jiu Jitsu, I feel like he’ll be fine on the ground or even better (than Ferguson).”

That may be a tough sell, but many are giving McGregor a clear edge on the feet – and justifiably so – as Ferguson has shown a penchant for sticking his chin high up in the air during his fights. With a solid chin, he takes a shot to land one or two of his own, but Danis said that’s path to certain demise against McGregor:

“I think Conor’s going to pick him apart on the feet, most likely knock him out early or he can probably do whatever he wants with him. Tony’s very sloppy. If you watch his fights, he gets hit a lot, and when you get hit against Conor you go out.”

As for whether or not the fight will happen, Danis believes it will, as Ferguson’s recent callout online has McGregor wanting to shut his mouth:

“I would think Tony Ferguson next because he won and Conor is gonna defend the belt and stuff like that. And me knowing Conor, Tony Ferguson is talking a lot of shit and I know Conor is gonna wanna shut him up. So I can see that happening.”

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Report: Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Next Fight Set For UFC 219

Top-ranked lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov may have wanted to reschedule his interim title bout with Tony Ferguson for his long-awaited return, but apparently, the UFC has other plans. No. 3-ranked Edson Barboza just revealed during a Q&A session at this weekend’s UFC Sao Paulo (via MMA Fighting) that he is supposedly taking on Nurmagomedov at December […]

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Top-ranked lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov may have wanted to reschedule his interim title bout with Tony Ferguson for his long-awaited return, but apparently, the UFC has other plans.

No. 3-ranked Edson Barboza just revealed during a Q&A session at this weekend’s UFC Sao Paulo (via MMA Fighting) that he is supposedly taking on Nurmagomedov at December 30’s UFC 219 pay-per-view (PPV) event from Las Vegas:

“I just got the news a few minutes ago that my next fight will be on Dec. 30 in Las Vegas against Khabib Nurmagomedov. I’m really happy with this opportunity. It’s going to be a war.”

The UFC has not yet made the bout official.

Nurmagomedov has been out of action since stopping longtime contender Michael Johnson at last November’s UFC 205. He was scheduled to take on Ferguson for the interim lightweight belt at March’s UFC 209, but some serious issues with his weight cut left him out of action for the entirety of 2017 thus far.

Out of action dealing with injuries since his “Knockout of the Year” candidate versus Beneil Dariush last March, Barboza has won three straight bouts since losing to Ferguson in an all-out battle in late 2015, making his potential match-up with Nurmagomedov a clear title eliminator.

That is, in a UFC division where Conor McGregor isn’t the champ.

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