Nate Diaz has reportedly been offered an extended UFC contract after the fan favourite turned down a fight with Khamzat Chimaev.
Diaz had one fight left on his deal when the promotion reportedly offered him a fight with the surging welterweight contender Chimaev.
Despite Chimaev's pest efforts to lure the Diaz into the fight, he rejected the Swede's offer stating he would only fight against a "top five" welterweight.
It means Diaz could still entertain a trilogy with fellow UFC star Conor McGregor, with the scores at one apiece heading into a third fight.
The promotion was hoping to book Diaz on their UFC 270 pay-per-view event on January 22, which takes place in Diaz's home state of California.
It's unclear when Diaz will fight again but a report from journalist Ariel Helwani states Diaz's contract has been extended - but not signed.
"Sounds like the UFC is moving on from Khamzat Chimaev vs. Nathan Diaz fight and, as a result, have extended Diaz’s contract,” Helwani wrote on his Substack page.
“I think they knew that would happen and were hoping to buy time for when Conor McGregor is ready to return later this year.
“Diaz hasn’t signed any new deal yet, so that, too, is a fascinating story to watch next year.”
The Stockton native is without a win in over two years, being outpointed by Leon Edwards in May and losing out on the 'BMF' title to Jorge Masvidal before that.
Despite having six losses in his last 10 UFC appearances, Diaz remains one of the UFC's biggest stars with his rematch against McGregor selling 1.6 million pay-per-view buys.
He won his first meeting against McGregor after stepping up on 11 days' notice to submit the Irishman, with McGregor avenging his loss five months later.
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One of the longest-serving fighters on the roster, Diaz was highly critical of the promotion for offering him a fight with Chimaev, who has just four UFC fights under his belt.
“They’re coming at me with [Chimaev], and I’m like, ‘Hold on, don’t disrespect me like that, trying to offer me a fight with a rookie,’” Diaz told TMZ.
“I’m cool, you got four fights in the UFC. Don’t even talk my name. There's levels to this."
Chimaev has taken the UFC by storm and is currently ranked at No.11 in the welterweight rankings.
"Hey Khamzat, if you in there, don’t be a b****, my boy’s (Maximov) right here, fight him,” Diaz continued.
“Anybody in the higher level even playing along to this Khamzat sh*t, you’re a b****, too, taking that s***. You’re a new rookie – deal with new people.”
