UFC star Nate Diaz will reportedly be sticking around after having his current contract extended by Dana White and company.

That news come from  MMA Journalist Ariel Helwani who reported the following news via a post on his Substack page.

“Sounds like the UFC is moving on from Khamzat Chimaev vs. Nathan Diaz fight and, as a result, have extended Diaz’s contract,” Helwani said (h/t MMANews). “I think they knew that would happen and were hoping to buy time for when Conor McGregor is ready to return later this year.”

Ariel Helwani continued:

“Diaz hasn’t signed any new deal yet, so that, too, is a fascinating story to watch next year.”

Nate Diaz (20-13 MMA) has not competed since suffering a unanimous decision loss to the aforementioned Leon Edwards at June’s UFC 263 event

Diaz was recently offered a fight with rising star Khamzat Chimaev, but quickly shot down the idea of fighting a “rookie” during a recent interview with TMZ Sports.

“They’re coming at me with Khamzat, and I’m like, ‘hold on, don’t disrespect me like that, trying to offer me a fight with a rookie.’ I’m cool, you got 4 fights in the UFC. Don’t even talk my name.”

Who and when Nate Diaz will fight in his Octagon returns remains to be seen. The ‘Stockton Slugger’ has expressed interest in a number of potential suitors for his final UFC fight including Kamaru Usman, Vicente Luque and Tony Ferguson.

However, as noted by Helwani, the UFC appears to be targeting a Diaz vs McGregor trilogy for 2022.

Conor McGregor has not competed since July’s UFC 264 event, where he suffered a broken leg during his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier. The Irish star is now back to full mobility and is planning a return to the cage in the summer of 2022.

Would you like to see Nate Diaz fight Conor McGregor in the final fight of his current UFC contract? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!