The time is right for McGregor-Diaz 3
Jorge Masvidal versus Conor McGregor was the fight to make.
It would've been electric and made the UFC a lot of money. It also could have set up McGregor's run at a third UFC belt.
But on Friday, the UFC decided to go with Masvidal against Kamaru Usman for the welterweight title - which I can't complain about after Wednesday's altercation at Super Bowl radio row. That's as good as matchmaking gets in the 170-pound title picture.
Unfortunately, it also takes "Gamebred" out of the McGregor sweepstakes for now.
After "The Notorious" triumphantly returned with a 40-second TKO of Donald Cerrone on Jan. 18, it seemed like McGregor had more options than ever. From Masvidal to the Khabib Nurmagomedov-Tony Ferguson winner to Justin Gaethje, nothing seemed out of the realm of possibility.
But with Masvidal-McGregor off the table, one fight stands out as the former two-division champion's best option for his next trip to the Octagon: Nate Diaz.
McGregor and Diaz squared off twice in 2016 in two of the biggest pay-per-views the company has ever put on. In March of that year, Diaz upset the Irishman with a wicked rear-naked choke after stepping up on two weeks' notice. McGregor rebounded, though, and took a majority decision in a rematch that summer - one of the best fights of 2016.
There would be more hype for the McGregor-Diaz trilogy if both were coming off wins, but Diaz lost to Masvidal in November. Still, McGregor is the biggest star in the sport, and Diaz isn't far behind. A third fight will always make sense and it'll always sell well.
It would also be a winnable fight for McGregor and based on the Cerrone matchup, that's what the UFC is looking for. It wants to get McGregor back in a title fight, ideally at lightweight, and McGregor needs a couple of wins to get there. Those victories are more likely to come against the likes of Cerrone or Diaz than Masvidal or Gaethje.
Plus, McGregor fighting Diaz will never be not entertaining. The trash talk at the press conferences will always be fun, and action will be plentiful in the cage.
Unless both McGregor and Diaz put together big win streaks, the trilogy might always feel like plan B - the fight that's always in the UFC's back pockets if nothing else comes to fruition.
But it's a darn good plan B.