LAS VEGAS — Nick Diaz’s improbable return to the UFC on Saturday drew a sellout crowd that loudly supported his every move. It had the atmosphere of a major title fight as he and Robbie Lawler made their way to the cage for their middleweight fight on the main card of UFC 266 at T-Mobile Arena.
But Diaz, who hasn’t won a fight since beating B.J. Penn at UFC 139 in 2011, didn’t have enough left in the tank to give the crowd what it came to see.
Lawler dropped him with a check right hook early in the third round and Diaz went down awkwardly.