MMA

Nate Diaz, Dustin Poirier Claim They’re Fighting For First 165 Pound UFC Title, UFC Denies Claims

Sean Ross SappSeptember 26, 2018, 3:19 am

UFC 230 in New York City is without a main event, but Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier tried to force one Tuesday night.

Both lightweight fighters tweeted Tuesday and stated that they’d be competing for the first-ever 165 pound title in the headlining bout.

I’m Happy to announce that I’m bringing a new weight devision to the Ufc
I’ll be fighting the main event November 3rd in nyc against Dustin Poirier for the first ever 165lb belt superfighter devision
I’m happy to be apart of history @ufc @danawhite

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) September 26, 2018

Its been a long journey but here we are. NYC 1st ever 165lb Title in the UFC! #THEREWILLBEBLOOD #THUGJITSU

— The Diamond (@DustinPoirier) September 26, 2018

Fightful.com and several other outlets were told this was not the case, or the plan, and the company was still searching for a headline fight for the show.

Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier claim they’re headlining UFC 230 with the inaugural 165 pound title. This would be fantastic news, but it’s not true. Wolf tickets, so to speak

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) September 26, 2018

Just spoke to Dana White on the phone, he denied any plans of a 165-pound title fight at Madison Square Garden. Says he’s still working on a main event for UFC 230.

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) September 26, 2018

Well, was hoping to be able to confirm Poirier-Diaz for the UFC 230 headliner but was told by a company official that it’s the “farthest thing from the truth.”

— John Morgan (@MMAjunkieJohn) September 26, 2018

Dana White has stated that Jon Jones isn’t headlining UFC 230. Meanwhile, Champions Daniel Cormier and Tyron Woodley are both injured. Robert Whittaker, TJ Dillashaw, Henry Cejudo, wouldn’t be ready, and other title fights are already booked for the event.

There have been many calls for a 165-pound division in the UFC, with welterweight being bumped up to 175 pounds. It’s likely that Khabib Nurmagomedov, Kevin Lee, Nate Diaz, Donald Cerrone, Alex Oliveira, Rafael dos Anjos, Jorge Masvidal, Michael Chiesa and several other top names would fall into that division.

UFC 230 takes place Saturday, November 3 from Madison Square Garden in New York City. Fightful.com and FightfulMMA.com will have full, live coverage and discussion of the show and a live post-show podcast.