You asked him if GSP vs Diaz was gonna set up TUF 14 coaching slots, and he said NO. You asked if GSP vs Diaz would headline UFC 140 in December, and he said NO. But did anybody ask if GSP vs Diaz was going to headline UFC 137? Today UFC President Dana White announced himself via Twitter that GSP vs Diaz is for sure going to happen now and that it will headline the newly announced event UFC 137 which will take place on October 29 in Las Vegas, NV. This Welterweight champion vs champion super-fight will be contested for the UFC 170lb title. This bout will mark the first time ever that a current reigning UFC champion will fight a current reigning Strikeforce champion; which marks the first time that a UFC vs Strikeforce will occur ever.
The month of May was a busy one for UFC President Dana White. Immediately following UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre's (22-2-0) sixth consecutive title defense with a Unanimous Decision over elite contender Jake Shields at UFC 129: St. Pierre vs Shields, White was bombarded with questions of who would be the champion's next opponent, and the first and pretty much only name on that list was reigning Strikeforce Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz (25-7-0(1)). This was an overall perfect suggestion after Diaz had also successfully defended his title earlier in that same month at Strikeforce: Diaz vs Daley and especially since both champions were basically fighting under the same roof with Zuffa owning both promotions now.
In the weeks following UFC 129 it was announced that Diaz had signed to officially fight former IBF champion Jeff Lacy in a profession boxing bout, which was allowed because his renewed contract with Strikeforce had an added provision that permitted him the opportunity to fight in one bout in professional boxing. In the post fight conference for UFC 129, White said he was going to have a talk with Diaz to talk him out of the boxing bout and make an interesting offer for something else. Through his manager, Diaz stated that he would turn down the boxing bout should he be offered the super-fight with St. Pierre. When unclear reports that the boxing bout was even still on, fan and media speculation ran wild as it was soon announced that UFC 140 was scheduled for December 10 in St. Pierre's home country in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. White then denied that the super-fight was a done deal and that UFC 140 would not be the event to host it. This speculation then began to include suspicion that the two head coaching slots for this upcoming season of TUF 14 would be set up with GSP vs Diaz, but was flat out denied by White. Speculation shot through the roof after news of Diaz pulling out of his boxing bout for an "opportunity of a lifetime." While fans and media thought that clearly set up the fight then and there, more complications were realized when word spread that Showtime was worried that a loss for Diaz would have a negative affect on their ratings when he would fight on their network and therefore would oppose the bout.
These worries for Showtime have been bypassed now as Zuffa has finalized a deal with Diaz that allows him to fight for both promotions and signs him to eight fights in either. A specific point in this contract was that Diaz had to agree to give up the provision that allowed him to compete in a professional boxing bout. While this cannot be confirmed officially at this time, Zuffa apparently promised the super-fight if Diaz agreed to pull out of his boxing bout with Lacy. This dual-promotional contract is similar to the dual-contracts that Strikeforce has already been doing with leading Japanese promotion Dream. With this contract, Diaz is set to make his return to the octagon since his last fight in the promotion at UFC 65: Bad Intentions where he defeated Gleison Tibau by Rnd2 TKO and opting to not sign back to the promotion even when he was promised another fight.
This super-fight has some of the greatest potential to be the best selling UFC PPV this year and possibly ever in the promotion's history. St. Pierre is already seen as the favorite to retain his title, but a majority of fans are only picking him to win via decision seeing that he does not ever stray from sticking to strategy and try for the finish even when his opponent is clearly rocked or vulnerable. Diaz is seen as the underdog, but is also given a strong chance to finish the "point-fighting" champion with some of the most unique boxing in MMA and with extremely skilled BJJ skills as he immediately looks for or is already locking on a submission when taken down. This could be Fight of the Year MMA fans.
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