Nate Diaz Rejects Conor McGregor Trilogy: "I'm Nobody's Comeback Story"

Nate Diaz has definitively expressed his lack of interest in participating in what he views as Conor McGregor’s career resurgence, confirming he has declined a potential third fight against the former UFC double champion.

Diaz is gearing up for his highly anticipated return to mixed martial arts after a four-year absence. He is slated to face Mike Perry on May 16 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, an event broadcast on MVP and Netflix, also featuring Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano.

Meanwhile, McGregor has also been out of competitive action for nearly five years and is expected to make his own comeback in July during International Fight Week.

Diaz Explains Refusal of McGregor Trilogy

Despite previous rumors suggesting a long-awaited trilogy bout between Diaz and "The Notorious" could finally settle their 1-1 score upon McGregor's return, the Stockton native is currently unwilling to revisit that rivalry.

During a recent conversation with Theo Von, Diaz articulated that a fight with McGregor will happen "when the time is right," but firmly stated he has no intention of serving as McGregor's comeback opponent. Instead, Diaz prefers to face the Irishman once McGregor has shaken off any ring rust and snapped his current two-fight losing streak.

"Me and Conor will fight again when the time is right, but it’s going to be when we’re both on the uprise, not when someone’s dying out. I’m not nobody’s comeback story."

Diaz further revealed that the UFC had initially pushed for a McGregor fight upon his return, rather than a bout with Charles Oliveira. He explained, "They [UFC] wanted me to come back and fight Conor McGregor... And they were like, okay, we want you to come back and maybe later we can do that. You know who is doing a good job, almost close to the same amount offer – Mike Perry, who’s the most violent mf. I’m more enthusiastic to get up and running and get ready to train for this mf who’s going to knock me out, or I’m gonna knock him out."