Who’s the baddest? Nate Diaz to face Jorge Masvidal inside MSG

Two fighters are looking to paint New York City red with blood when Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal main event UFC 244. On the line? The chance to call themselves the true “BMF” of the UFC.

Speaking to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, UFC President Dana White confirmed the fight would headline the Madison Square Garden show on November 2nd. A rare time when no true title fight will main event a PPV, White was adamant that both Diaz and Masvidal are worthy enough to headline.

“It is the fight fans wanted to see,” White told Okamoto. “Nate Diaz called out Masvidal after his win over [Anthony] Pettis. Everybody has been talking about it. People have been hitting me up on social media, telling me to get it done. I can now announce the fight is done.”

As White stated above, Diaz (20-11) beat Anthony Pettis back at UFC 241 in August. It was his first fight since 2016, following two competitive bouts against Conor McGregor. Diaz called out Masvidal (34-13), who knocked out Ben Askren back in July with a brutal flying knee.

This fight being announced early is a big step up from last November’s (UFC 230) debacle. Multiple delays and cancellations (including a Diaz bout against Dustin Poirier) resulted in a last-minute bout between Daniel Cormier and Derrick Lewis. This year, plans for Kamaru Usman v. Colby Covington seemingly fell through, resulting in Dana and the UFC to pull out the big guns.

With the UFC actually set on making a title for the BMF Champion, it shows just how special this fight is. It also shows how they are willing to do whatever it takes to get these two to fight one another, sans creating a new, legitimate division. Sorry folks, there won’t be a 165-pound division… not yet at least.

Ticket information for UFC 244 is set to be released soon. Based off of this match, tickets should sell out fast.