After talk of return, Dana White says Nick Diaz remains retired

SEATTLE – So it turns out Nick Diaz won’t be returning to the UFC after all – at least not right now.

Less than a month after the onetime UFC title challenger reportedly asked for a fight, UFC President Dana White said not so fast – he is still retired.

And recent talk from Diaz trainer Cesar Gracie of a possible bout offer was also apparently not as serious as it seemed, according to the UFC exec.

“There was no miscommunication; it was Cesar,” White told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I haven’t spoken to Cesar Gracie in over a year.”

Earlier in July, Gracie hinted that Diaz (26-9 MMA, 7-6 UFC) was in talks with the UFC and could be returning to the cage to fight an unnamed opponent. He later claimed that he was misquoted by the media outlet that conducted the interview and posted his quotes online.

The news followed a claim from White that Diaz was contemplating a comeback after breaking up with his girlfriend. He then said he would be happy to get the popular and controversial fighter an opponent.

As is often the case with Diaz, MMA observers jumped at both pieces of news. Diaz retired in the cage following a loss in March to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

While White said he did recently speak with Diaz, their conversation wasn’t about MMA.

“We didn’t talk about a fight,” he said. “(We talked about) other s–t.”

Yet the UFC executive couldn’t say for sure whether Diaz was completely opposed to fighting again.

“Nick Diaz isn’t an easy read,” White said.

So, as is often the case with Diaz, his fans will wait and wonder what, if anything, he decides to do, and where exactly his head is at.

White can’t be of any aid in answering that question.

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Nick Diaz)