5 reasons why booking a Nate Diaz vs. Tony Ferguson fight makes sense

Nate Diaz vs. Tony Ferguson is the fight to make. Both fighters have several things in common that would make their fight an exciting matchup.

Both have competed in the lightweight and welterweight divisions. They are both winners of The Ultimate Fighter, are the same age, and are massive entertainers known for their creative antics inside and outside the octagon.

That's just the tip of the iceberg, making this an entertainment-packed potential matchup.

Here are 5 reasons why booking a Nate Diaz vs. Tony Ferguson fight makes sense:

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5) Diaz and Ferguson have near-identical physical attributes and stats

Nate Diaz and Tony Ferguson both stand six feet tall. They also walk around the same weight outside of fights.

'El Cucuy' has a slight reach advantage of half an inch over the Stockton brawler, but that does not make much difference in a fight.

Diaz has had 33 fights in his MMA career, while Ferguson has had 31. The number of decision wins on Nate Diaz's record is 5, while Tony Ferguson has won by decision 4 times, suggesting that both fights prefer to finish their fights.

4) The Mexican lineage

Nate Diaz and Tony Ferguson belong to Mexican ancestry. Perhaps it is because of this that they have a few things in common in their general approach towards their fights.

Neither of them prioritizes championship belts over good fights. They just want to beat the best fighters in the UFC. Neither fighter has ever dodged fights; they have always stepped up to the challenge of taking up difficult fights only.

It is no surprise that they have had common opponents in Anthony Pettis, Michael Johnson, Rafael dos Anjos, and Donald Cerrone.

Diaz and Ferguson have had several losses in their professional record, but that does not affect them one bit. On the contrary, they keep coming back more determined, fight after fight, staying true to the lineage of Mexican combat sports athletes.

For this reason, they command a lot of respect from their fans.

3) Grappling backgrounds

Both fighters have had only one submission loss each on their professional MMA record.

Nate Diaz is a second-degree black belt in Gracie Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Tony Ferguson comes from a wrestling background and is a black belt in Eddie Bravo's 10th Planet jiu-jitsu.

Hence, both fighters have a different approach to grappling. Diaz sticks to more traditional methods of grappling in contrast to Ferguson's more creative methods.

Fans will be treated to some incredible scrambles and grappling exchanges between the two. The fight between them should be a good showdown between the grappling methods of Gracie Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Eddie Bravo's 10th Planet jiu-jitsu.

2) Durable fighters

Nate Diaz and Tony Ferguson have gas tanks that never go empty, although both of them have different ways of training to achieve their endless supply of cardio and endurance.

Diaz gets his gas tank from training and competing in triathlons, while Ferguson gets his by using training methods designed by himself, mostly aimed towards active recovery. His training sessions often go on for 7-8 hours a day.

At the same time, both their chins are legendary. None of their fights have ever ended in a proper knockout. Nate Diaz has two TKO losses on his record, one from a head kick. Other than that, both fighters have faced one TKO loss each only because doctors had to intervene.

Nate Diaz's TKO loss due to doctor stoppage came in his fight against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244 after getting a laceration on his eyebrow from a strike. Tony Ferguson's TKO came when his eye socket broke after taking multiple punches from Justin Gaethje at UFC 249.

In both of these fights, they took plenty of strikes on their chins, but it just wasn't enough to knock them out.

It is also notable how Ferguson never taps out when held in submission locks. In his last two fights, he found himself on the receiving end of the armbar and ankle lock submissions by Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush respectively. 'El Cucuy' just refused to tap when held in both cases.

1) Nate Diaz and Tony Ferguson are at a similar point in their MMA careers

Diaz and Ferguson's careers have seen a downward spiral in recent times. Both of them have accumulated a bunch of losses in the past couple of years.

It brings them to a point where they might be released from their respective UFC contracts if their losing spree continues.

Before that happens, Tony Ferguson, who has had more success in the UFC than the less interested Nate Diaz, will want to bring himself back into title contention.

In any case, fans would love to see the fight between them that should have happened a long time ago when they have so many things in common.