Nate Diaz vs. Gray Maynard Set for UFC Fight Night 20 Main Event
byDann Stupp on Oct 20, 2009 at 7:00 pm ET
A lightweight bout between Gray Maynard (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) and Nate Diaz (11-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC), two of the top fighters to come out of the fifth season of "The Ultimate Fighter" reality series, is set for UFC Fight Night 20's main event in January.
Diaz's camp announced the bout via its official Web site, GracieFighter.com, and MMAjunkie.com (
www.mmajunkie.com) has confirmed Maynard will likely earn a future title shot if victorious at the show.
Although not officially announced, UFC Fight Night 20 takes place Jan. 11 in Fairfax, Va.
As MMAjunkie.com recently reported, the event is likely to take place at the 11,000-seat Patriot Center on the campus of George Mason University.
Maynard recently moved to 8-0 and picked up his sixth straight UFC victory with a split-decision win over Roger Huerta in September. The former Michigan State wrestler actually first fought Diaz on "TUF 5," where he suffered a submission loss in the competition's semifinal round. It's been all domination since then; after a bizarre no-contest with Rob Emerson at the show's live finale (after what was deemed an unofficial double-TKO caused by a Maynard slam), Maynard has posted six straight victories, though the past five have come via decision.
Diaz, meanwhile, looks to build off his recent victory over Melvin Guillard in the main event of UFC Fight Night 19. After defeating Manny Gamburyan to win "TUF 5," Diaz ran his win streak to five (with wins over notables Kurt Pellegrino and Josh Neer) to enter the UFC's lightweight title picture. His championship aspirations, though, took a hit with subsequent back-to-back losses to Clay Guida (split decision) and Joe Stevenson (unanimous decision).
Even in the losses, though, Diaz posted memorable performances. He's won one of the UFC's official "fight night" bonuses in a staggering five straight fights with three Fight of the Night bonuses and two Submission of the Night awards. The bonuses have amounted to an extra $170,000 in pay.
The latest rumored UFC Fight Night 20 card includes:
Nate Diaz vs. Gray Maynard*
Josh Koscheck vs. Mike Pierce*
Efrain Escudero vs. Nik Lentz*
Chris Leben vs. Jay Silva*
Tom Lawlor vs. Aaron Simpson*
Jesse Lennox vs. Rick Story*
Mike Guymon vs. Rory MacDonald*
* - Not officially announced
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