Nate Diaz will replace dos Anjos, face McGregor at UFC 196

Ultimate Fighting Championship star Nate Diaz is a popular fighter who just had the best performance of his career at exactly the right time.

His dominance from start to finish in a unanimous decision over Michael Johnson in December vaulted him into the upper echelon of the lightweight division. It also gave him just enough cache in the organization that he has been granted the massive opportunity of stepping in for injured lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos to fight featherweight champ Conor McGregor in the main event of UFC 196 on March 5 at the MGM Grand Garden.

UFC president Dana White broke the news Tuesday on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.”

“We figured this would be the most exciting fight,” White said. “It’s the fight that Conor really wanted. A lot of people wanted to fight Conor McGregor, but Diaz wanted the fight, and we figured this was the fight to make and the fight that the fans wanted to see.”

The bout will be contested at welterweight with Diaz agreeing to fight on late notice. No belt will be on the line in the five-round fight.

Westgate Las Vegas sports book opened McGregor as a minus-330 favorite over on Diaz late Tuesday night.

Diaz is 2-3 in his past five fights, but his brawling style and propensity for trash-talking have kept him among the organization’s most popular fighters.

Dos Anjos was forced to pull out of his title defense against McGregor because of a foot injury, sources close to the organization confirmed Tuesday morning.

Dos Anjos reportedly broke his foot during training Friday, and his team made the decision Monday that he would be unable to fight.

“Sorry to all my real fans and (UFC),” he posted late Tuesday on Twitter. “I never cancel any fight due to injury but accidents happen #Jesus #truechampion.”

McGregor was seeking to become the first fighter in UFC history to simultaneously hold belts in two weight classes.

The organization was in a similar position of finding a late opponent for the Irish superstar in July when former featherweight champion Jose Aldo pulled out of a fight with McGregor 11 days before UFC 189 at the MGM Grand Garden. In that instance, McGregor fought late-replacement Chad Mendes and knocked him out in the second round to win the interim featherweight belt.

McGregor beat Aldo in December to win the undisputed featherweight belt.

Several fighters expressed interest in taking on McGregor. Donald Cerrone, Anthony Pettis, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Urijah Faber were among those seeking the fight, according to their social media posts and sources close to the UFC.

Top featherweight contender Frankie Edgar was contacted about his availability, but the former lightweight champion was unable to accept because of injury. Representatives for Aldo told White he would be unable to accept the rematch on such short notice.

“We called Jose Aldo, and Jose Aldo turned the fight down,” White said. “We called Frankie Edgar, and Frankie Edgar turned the fight down. We called (Donald) ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone, (and he) absolutely accepted the fight — would love to take the fight. B.J. Penn said he wanted the fight. A lot of guys wanted this fight, but we ended up with Nate Diaz.”

UFC 196 includes a women’s bantamweight title bout between Las Vegan Miesha Tate and champion Holly Holm.

McGregor still is widely considered the favorite to headline UFC 200 at T-Mobile Arena on July 9, though a loss to Diaz could impact those plans.

Dos Anjos is expected to be sidelined six to eight weeks. The timeline could make him available to defend the lightweight belt against McGregor on that card.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj