Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) today announced a welterweight match up between Nate Diaz and Rory Markham for the preliminary portion of the UFC 111 card from the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on March 27.
Ten bouts have now been made official.
This will be Nate Diaz’s first trip up to welterweight after a rather frustrating run in the promotion’s lightweight division. His last fight with top contender Gray Maynard at UFC Fight Night 20 ended controversially with Maynard edging Diaz out for a split decision victory.
Nate Diaz To Take On Rory Markham At UFC 111
It’s a major change to see Diaz on the preliminary portion of a card given that he seems to be a Fight Night main event staple. Still, the chances that this fight makes the broadcast in some capacity are very high.
Markham is coming off a long layoff due to injury. Prior to the injury he suffered a loss at the hands of Dan Hardy at UFC 95. Rebounding from an injury and a loss against what is sure to be a motivated Diaz will be a tough task but should he be able to pull it off it could vault Markham into some big fights in a division that needs some new contenders to emerge.
See More:
