Nate Diaz says the UFC is hoping that he loses rematch against Conor McGregor

UFC veteran Nate Diaz has gained a ton of fans and exposure since beating UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor at UFC 196 in March.

With their scheduled rematch set for UFC 202 in August, Diaz told Megan Olivi on UFC Fight Pass that he feels that the UFC is setting him up and hoping that McGregor will be able to win their second bout.

“When it first got booked, I was like, ‘Man, they want to get me right back in there, try to win this back and weed me out again. That’s how I felt,” said Diaz (transcribed by The 42).

“I was like, ‘Can I just sit back for eight months and soak up some popularity and some exposure, go on vacation and do what I’ve got to do? They were like, ‘We want this’, and I’m like, ‘Why so quick?’ ”

Diaz admitted that the biggest payday of his career followed up with another that could get him paid even more in the rematch is making it all worth it.

“But whatever. Then the deal got done. That payday and this payday in such a short amount of time, you can’t pass that up, so let’s do it. But I felt like these guys want to weed me right back out, hoping that I lose. They better hope I lose because if I win this one, I’m really taking over.”