After the three year break from the octagon, Stockton fighter Nate Diaz made his return to UFC 241. He squared off against Anthony “Showtime” Pettis in a welterweight showdown. After struggling a bit in the first round, there were questions about which man would have the edge on the ground, and we found out quickly Diaz was superior with his grappling. Things only got worse for Pettis early in the second round when Diaz checked a leg kick that appeared to cause an injury to Pettis’ ankle. “Showtime” fought through it, but he looked compromised, and Diaz knew it and turned up the 209 heat.

In the third round Diaz nearly stopped Pettis as he pummeled him with knees against the cage.  Pettis again toughed it out to survive the situation, but it didn’t appear he was winning any rounds. Officially, two of the three judges gave Diaz all three rounds, and one judge gave Pettis one frame, most likely the first round. Pettis did appear to be in control of that first round until the take down, and depending on how heavily the judges weighed that successful moment for Diaz, it could have shifted it in his favor.

This is Diaz’s first time back in the octagon since he faced Conor McGregor in UFC 202.  Fighting in UFC 241’s main event signals the third straight Main Event in as many fights for the Stockton native fighter.