Israel Adesanya’s coach Eugene Bareman does not believe Nick Diaz should have been fighting in the Octagon at UFC 266.

Diaz (26-10 MMA) returned from a six year hiatus this past weekend for a rematch with Robbie Lawler. The pair had first met 17 years ago at UFC 47, with the Stockton Slugger emerging victorious by way of second round knockout.

‘Ruthless’ was able to exact his revenge on Diaz at UFC 266, stopping the former Strikeforce welterweight champion in the third round with a punch (see that here).

While Eugene Bareman respects Nick Diaz as a fighter, he does not believe the leader of the Stockton Army should have been participating on Saturday night.

“I’m a little bit disappointed, I guess,” Bareman told Submission Radio (h/t MMAMania). “I mean, I came through the ranks watching Nick Diaz. And a guy who’s been out that long and apparently had six weeks to train with—Was it six years, I think? And then why did he only have a six-week training camp? That’s crazy. You can’t do that to someone.”

Israel Adesanya’s coach continued:

“As good a fighter as he is, which he showed, he should never have been in there. He should never have been in there. And we can speculate about the reasons he was in there. (Nick Diaz) is obviously a big draw, he brings a lot of eyes to the sport, to the pay-per-view and stuff, but you can’t have six years off, jump in against someone who’s been regularly fighting, someone who’s as good as Robbie Lawler, do a six-week training camp and come in there and expect to perform.”

Bareman’s comments echoed that of Diaz’s longtime friend and training partner Jake Shields, who claimed Nick was “pressured” into taking the fight at UFC 266.

Would you like to see Nick Diaz fight again following his TKO loss to Robbie Lawler? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!