Urijah Faber Claims He Was Offered UFC 196 Fight Before Nate Diaz

Nate Diaz shocked the world when he submitted then UFC Featherweight Champion Conor McGregor at UFC 196 on just about three weeks notice.

However, the retired Urijah Faber is claiming that he was offered the fight before the Stockton native was.

“Actually, a lot of people don’t know that I was offered a fight with Conor McGregor – the same fight that Nate Diaz got,” Faber said at the UFC Fight Night Shanghai Q&A. “And I was going to go up two weight classes and fight him on three weeks’ notice.”

Faber would never get the opportunity to fight McGregor or Diaz and he would retire from competition in December of 2016.

Even though he didn’t get the chance to fight the current UFC Lightweight Champion, the retired Faber says the fight would’ve been a great challenge.

“That would’ve been a good pay day, and it would’ve been a lot of fun,” he said. “I like Conor a lot, but as you know he’s a good fight for anybody these days. It would’ve been nice to have had that fight even though it would’ve been up two weight classes and on short notice. I’m always game for a challenge like that.”

McGregor and Diaz would fight again at UFC 202, with McGregor earning the decision win on that occasion.