On the main card of UFC 266, Nick Diaz is set to make his highly-anticipated return as he rematches Robbie Lawler in a middleweight bout. Diaz is a +120 underdog while the former UFC welterweight champ is a -140 favorite.
Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros are nearly unanimous in thinking Robbie Lawler wins due to activity but the pros admit this is a tough one to call.
BJPENN.com Fighter Picks Nick Diaz vs. Robbie Lawler 2:
Kevin Lee, UFC welterweight: I’m going to go with Diaz. I think he can pull it off and look good despite the layoff.
Dan Hooker, UFC lightweight: That’s a tough one. Robbie Lawler is my guy, he’s my favorite fighter of all time and he’s been active so Robbie.
Christos Giagos, UFC lightweight: I am going to go with Robbie Lawler, he’s just been more active.
Alex Morono, UFC welterweight: That’s tough to call, you don’t which Nick Diaz or Robbie Lawler will show up. I’ll say Lawler as he has been more active.
Julian Erosa, UFC featherweight: I have to go with Robbie Lawler because he is closer to what he used to be than what Nick Diaz is.
Jim Miller, UFC lightweight: I think Lawler, it’s been too long for Diaz. It’s hard to tell what either guy will look like though.
Modestas Bukauskas, UFC light heavyweight: Oh that is a tough one but I’m going to go with Robbie Lawler. Nick Diaz has been out for too long.
Devin Clark, UFC light heavyweight: That one is hard to say, I would assume Robbie Lawler does because we haven’t seen Nick fight in a long time. Fun fight, though.
Andre Petroski, UFC middleweight: Who the hell knows. I’ll say Robbie Lawler because he has been active and trains at Sanford. We don’t know what Diaz looks like because he has been off for so long.
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Fighters picking Nick Diaz: Kevin Lee
Fighters picking Robbie Lawler: Dan Hooker, Christos Giagos, Alex Morono, Julian Erosa, Jim Miller, Modestas Bukauskas, Devin Clark, Andre Petroski
ICYMI: Pros also picked Alexander Volkanovski vs. Brian Ortega and Valentina Shevchenko vs. Lauren Murphy at UFC 266.
Who do you think wins the fight between Nick Diaz and Robbie Lawler at UFC 266?