Is Nate Diaz retiring from UFC? Dana White raises major doubt over veteran's future

UFC chief Dana White had high praise for Nate Diaz after his UFC 263 loss against Leon Edwards but doesn’t know what comes next for the veteran fighter. The 36-year-old Diaz succumbed to defeat against Edwards on Saturday with a unanimous decision loss on the card, which took place at Gila River Arena and aired on pay-per-view. However, White's comments on Diaz after the bout have fuelled speculation over a possible Nate Diaz retirement. So the question is - 'Is Nate Diaz retiring from UFC?'

Nate Diaz future in doubt after Dana White's comments: Is Nate Diaz retiring from UFC? 

Leon Edwards dominated the fight for the first four rounds and most of the fifth but a furious Diaz finish made things a bit interesting. However, Edwards earned 49-46 results on all three judges' scorecards for the win. While Diaz has maintained that he should have won the fight despite losing four of the five rounds, UFC president Dana White didn't agree with the veteran fighter but did have his praise for the way Diaz fought. 

White said, "Nate's leg was done in the first round, he went five rounds taking leg kicks, bleeding out of both sides of his head. One was squirting this way, one way squirting this way. He was still doing what the Diaz brothers do. He was working the whole fight to get into his head and try to make him make a mistake, and then he eventually caught him in the fifth round. He’s unbelievable. He’s gonna be asking us for a six-round fight next time." 

Nate Diaz next fight: Nate Diaz retirement talk on social media

With three defeats in his last four bouts and two in succession, White, quite clearly, does not have any idea what’s next for Diaz. The UFC boss then explained, "I don’t know (what’s next). He’s a fan favourite, people love him to win, lose, or draw. I don’t know. We’ll see what’s next. Well, whatever it is, the lack of answer almost certainly does not reflect well."

White White's comments might have been simple to understand for many, some UFC fans began to wonder whether there will be any Nate Diaz next fight at all ever again.

Nate Diaz UFC record

Diaz's first fight in the UFC took place in 2007 against Manvel Gamburyan which he won in Round 1. As per the Nate Diaz UFC record, he went on to win 16 fights in the UFC while losing 11 times. Prior to his loss against Edwards, Diaz suffered defeat against Jorge Masvidal in November 2019. 

Image Credits - Nate Diaz Instagram