Dana White Reacts to Nate Diaz, Khamzat Chimaev Performances at UFC 279

While Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev didn’t end up meeting in the UFC 279 main event as originally anticipated, both gave performances to remember on Saturday night.

Diaz submitted Tony Ferguson with a guillotine choke in the fourth round of the card’s new headliner to fulfill the final fight on his UFC contract. After the victory, Diaz hinted that he would be willing to return to the UFC some time in the future after he explores other options. If that’s the case, UFC president Dana White would welcome him back with open arms.

“No matter what Nate does from here on out, this is his house,” White said at the post-fight press conferene. “He’s been here forever. It’s been a blast having him here. I wish him well. He and I had this discussion months ago at the offices. Whatever he moves on to do, I wish him nothing but the best. If he’s starting his own organization or getting into promoting or doing something else, I wish him nothing but the best of luck. It’s been awesome having him here.”

Diaz vs. Ferguson itself was a fight that was entertaining at times, bizarre at others. Overall, White believes it delivered what it was supposed to deliver.

“They’re both older guys that have been around here for a long time,” he said. “It was what I expected.”

Chimaev, meanwhile, missed weight badly but was completely dominant in a first-round submission of Kevin Holland in a 180-pound catchweight bout. White was taken aback by how easily Chimaev dispatched Holland.

“I don’t know if anybody expected him to do exactly what he did,” White said. “You don’t know what to expect from that guy. This is like his fourth fight where he hasn’t even taken a punch. He’s an absolute f—ing freak of nature. I don’t think anybody expected that, especially against Kevin.”

However, White did acknowledge that Chimaev’s issues on the scale will have to be addressed. A potential move to middleweight could be in the cards if he can’t consistently make the welterweight limit.

“It’s a problem that he missed weight,” White said. “We’ve got to look at it and figure it out. What makes sense is for him to fight at [middleweight]. We’ll see.”