Dustin Poirier has been told by legendary former UFC champion Michael Bisping to finally make a fight with Nate Diaz happen next year.
The former lightweight title contenders have had a rivalry running since they agreed to fight at Madison Square Garden in 2018 on the undercard of UFC 230. But that bout was cancelled, and over the years despite a number of offers and acceptances on either side, they have been unable to fight.
Now, it appears that things may be more difficult than ever with Diaz having just left the UFC, while Poirier is locked into a deal and still keen to pursue world honours. But Bisping believes that the bout could still be made, particularly if the recently-departed fighter will accept a one-fight deal as his rival suggested in a recent social media spat.
"What Dustin Poirier suggests isn't a bad idea," Bisping said in a video on his YouTube channel. "Of course, it would mean the UFC would have to come on board and offer a one fight deal. I don't know if they would do that or not, but the fan in me hypothetically looks at that. Dustin Poirier, Nate Diaz.
"I know a lot of the UFC fans would get a kick out of that. They would be up for that in a heartbeat. I guarantee you that would do massive pay-per-view buys. Nate Diaz is a big star and Dustin Poirier, I mean come on, everyone loves Dustin Poirier. Dustin Poirier vs Nate Diaz sounds like a smart business move. I don't know if the UFC are in the habit or the business of handing out one fight contracts, but Nate Diaz versus Dustin Poirier would be an absolute classic."
The promotion generally don't like to hand out short-term contracts like Poirier has suggested, and likely wouldn't be keen on Diaz returning for just one fight. In fact, it has been reported that it was his reluctance to accept a contract extension as part of the deal that cost Diaz the bout with Poirier.
Diaz was eventually allowed to fight out his UFC contract back in September, but the promotion gave him a wildly unfavourable match-up in the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev. However, that bout was scrapped when the Swede showed up more than 7lb overweight and the entire card was rescheduled.
Instead, Chimaev faced Kevin Holland, disposing of him within a round, while Diaz was given a considerably more favourable match-up against the aging Tony Ferguson. The former interim lightweight champion was on a four-fight losing streak, and succumbed to a fourth round submission allowing Diaz to leave on a win.