MANILA, Philippines – The much-awaited welterweight rematch between lightweight contender Nate Diaz and featherweight kingpin Conor McGregor will finally happen as it has been booked to headline the UFC 202 pay-per-view event on August 20.
The second meeting between Diaz and McGregor was originally penciled to happen at UFC 200 on July 9, but it was cancelled after the latter refused to fulfill media and promotional obligations.
A few hours before its announcement, Diaz teased that the second encounter was on the verge of coming to fruition by posting a video on Instagram with "getting deals done today" as his caption, which was a reference to his rocky negotiations with the organization about dancing with McGregor inside the Octagon once more.
However, it came with a surprising-but-hilarious twist as Diaz smacked UFC president Dana White with the signature “Stockton Slap” on the head.
{source}<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-version="7" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:8px;"> <div style=" background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:32.8125% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;"> <div style=" background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;"></div></div> <p style=" margin:8px 0 0 0; padding:0 4px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BGQJYQVOPpo/" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">Getting deals done today #immagetmymoney #stocktonslapped #ufc @representltd #100</a></p> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A video posted by natediaz209 (@natediaz209) on <time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime="2016-06-05T00:14:25+00:00">Jun 4, 2016 at 5:14pm PDT</time></p></div></blockquote>
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Diaz, who stepped in as a replacement for the injured Rafael dos Anjos on 11 days' notice, shocked the world by submitting the UFC featherweight titleholder in a welterweight bout at UFC 196 on March 5.
But Diaz absorbed significant punishment from McGregor as he was on the receiving end of left hands and uppercuts.
The 30-year-old native of Stockton, California entered the second round bleeding from a cut near his right eye, but he remained unfazed and kept throwing punches until McGregor shot for a desperate takedown.
After bailing on a guillotine choke, Diaz positioned himself to full mount and compelled McGregor to surrender his back for a rear-naked choke at the 4:12 mark of the second round.
UFC 202 is scheduled to take place a yet-to-be-announced venue in Las Vegas, Nevada. – Rappler.com