Not long after UFC officials announced the fight between Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev as the main event for UFC 279 on Saturday, fans on the internet began suggesting some interesting hypotheticals.
Blame it on the circumstances of the fight, how and why it came together.
Diaz, with only one fight left on his UFC contract, had made it very clear that he wanted to fight somebody – anybody – and exit the promotion as a free agent. UFC executives had reportedly tried for months to get him to sign a new contract. According to Diaz, they denied him other fights against other opponents who might have made more sense.
In the end, they offered him Chimaev, a fast-rising welterweight contender who looks like a stylistic nightmare for Diaz.