Nate Diaz has cited a pay dispute with the UFC as the reasoning behind his reluctance to fight Dustin Poirier.
Moments before Diaz took to Twitter, 'The Diamond' had claimed he was ready to challenge the California native at UFC 270. However, the fight didn't materialize. Poirier then hinted that he may fight the Stockton slugger at UFC 271 instead.
Diaz later noted on Twitter that the UFC isn't paying him enough to fight Poirier.
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"The ufc don’t wanna pay for u dp sorry u suck. Loser."
UFC 270 is set to take place on January 22nd, 2022. The card will be headlined by a unification bout between UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and interim title holder Ciryl Gane.
Almost three weeks later, UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker will lock horns in a rematch in the main event of UFC 271.
Dustin Poirier recently fought UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira in the main event of UFC 269. He lost the bout via second-round submission.
Meanwhile, Diaz's last fight was opposite Leon Edwards at UFC 263. Edwards dominated the first four rounds of the bout, but was forced to survive a late onslaught from Diaz to secure his victory.
Diaz and Poirier were previously scheduled to fight at UFC 230 in 2018. Due to an injury, the No.2-ranked lightweight was forced to withdraw from the bout.
Dustin Poirier teased retirement after UFC 269 loss
Following his title loss to Charles Oliveira, Dustin Poirier appeared unsure of his UFC future. The 32-year-old said he's capable of riding another winning streak to get another title shot, but isn't convinced if he really wants to do that.
"I worked hard to get back here to fight for another world title. Got choked out again, I'm just heartbroken really. I can do anything I put my mind to, I can fight for the belt and go on another streak. It's just do I want to? That's the question I have to look in the mirror and answer. Do I want to do go down the road again?"
Before UFC 269, Dustin Poirier was on a three-fight win streak, defeating Conor McGregor (twice) and Dan Hooker during the stretch. His overall professional MMA record stands at 28-7, 1 NC.