“The reason I was off was because everybody sucked and there was no one to fight,” Diaz told Joe Rogan after his UFC 241 win. “With this belt I want to defend it against…Jorge Masvidal…(he) had a good last fight. All respect to the man, but there ain’t no gangsters in this game anymore, nobody who’s done it right except me and him.”

Fans and media immediately jumped on board for the possibility of a showdown between two of the truest competitors in the sport. The UFC was soon on board, so much so that White proposed creating a BMF belt for the event. His team agreed, and there will be one making its way to NYC on fight week in November.

“This is one of those fights that built a life of its own,” said White, who revealed that over 10,000 tickets have already been sold for the event, this coming before Friday’s public on-sale. “This fight’s a big deal for the division and for who’s next in the title picture.”