Cesar Gracie has stated that Nick Diaz will, “get back to his roots”, while he is suspended. He is, of course, talking about jiu jitsu. So, here are a few opponents he should face if he does actually compete!
1. Braulio Estima
This match was supposed to headline the 2012 World Jiu Jitsu Expo, but Diaz was a no show. He claimed that Estima did not make weight, and that his purse was not donated to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital by the deadline he set. There would be a good amount of animosity before this match, which would lead to a great build up, and Diaz would bring a lot of eyes to the sport.
2. Kron Gracie
This would be an excellent match up. The ultimate battle of traditional jiu jitsu. Kron, like Braulio, has competed under the Metamoris banner before, so this match would most likely be a Metamoris main event. Both of these guys would be going for the submission the whole time, which would make it an action packed match.
3. Benson Henderson
We just saw Henderson compete at ADCC, and he didn’t fare so well. That being said, this would still be a great match up. Henderson defeated Nick’s brother, Nate, in the UFC and I’m sure that Nick would like to avenge his brother’s loss on the mat.
4. George St. Pierre
Yes, this is probably one of the most unlikely match ups to happen, but it would still be awesome. We saw Diaz get under GSP’s skin leading up to their title fight in the UFC, and it still felt like they had unfinished business after the fight. Seeing them go at it under strictly submission grappling rules would be a real treat.
5. Garry Tonon
Tonon is the hottest grappler in the submission only game right now. He submitted Dillion Danis at ADCC, and I would love to see him get a crack at Nick Diaz. This match would be a never ending chain of submission attempts, which is just the way a submission grappling match should be.
Nick Diaz and Kron train together. This doesn’t seem likely to happen.