On Monday afternoon, during an segment of Fox Sports Live, it was revealed fan favorite Nate Diaz will make his return to the Octagon against Michael Johnson at UFC on FOX 17 in December.

Diaz (17-10), winner of the fifth season of The Ultimate Fighter, has not been seen inside the Octagon since his one sided decision loss to current UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos at UFC on FOX 13 last December.

However, during his hiatus the younger of the Diaz brother remained in the headlines after a heat confrontation with Khabib Nurmagomedov, while the two were in attendance at WSOF 22 earlier this month. He will enter this bout having lost three of his last four contest.

Johnson (16-9), the runner-up on season 12 of TUF, most recently saw his four fight wins streak snapped in the form a controversial split decision loss to Beneil Dariush earlier this month at UFC Fight Night 74. During his previous win streak, ‘The Menace’ earned wins over Joe Lauzon, Gleison Tibau, Melvin Guillard and Edson Barboza.

UFC on FOX 17 is currently set to take place Dec. 19 at the Amway Center in Orlando. This will mark the final event of the UFC’s 2015 calendar. A lightweight title fight between dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone will serve as the main event.

About The Author

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José began his career as a mixed martial arts journalist while still enrolled at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Arizona State University. Since graduating in May 2013, he has attended dozens of high profile UFC fight cards as a credentialed member of the media, providing live cage side coverage through his articles and videos. His work has appeared on UFC.com, ArizonaSports.com and AZCentral. He is also currently one of the main contributors on Power MMA Show at Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, one of the first all MMA radio shows on a major radio station.