Nate Diaz Has Title Shot at Stake; Jim Miller “a Fight or Two Away”
Much has been made about the winner of Saturday’s UFC on Fox 3 main event between Nate Diaz and Jim Miller getting a shot at the UFC lightweight championship… but that’s only partially correct.
“If Diaz wins, he gets a title shot; if Miller wins, he is probably still a fight or two away,” said UFC president Dana White on Wednesday, who likened the fight to the situation that Rashad Evans and Phil Davis were in at UFC on Fox 2 in January.
Evans earned a shot at UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones with a win over Davis, while Davis, if he had won, was still going to be a fight or two away from his title bid.
Following a rough patch at lightweight, Diaz made an attempt at welterweight over the past couple of years, where he went 2-2 at 170 pounds.
Late last year, he returned to lightweight, making an immediate impact, submitting Takanori Gomi and winning a unanimous decision over Donald Cerrone, who had been making his own run towards the title at the time.
Miller had been rocketing towards a title shot with seven consecutive victories, but he heard the brakes screech after losing a unanimous decision to current UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson last August.
He bounced back with a submission of Melvin Guillard in the main event of the first UFC on FX event, but now needs to keep the roll going to get back into the hunt for the belt.
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