Nick Diaz announced on Monday he plans to return to the UFC Octagon next year, and he wants to do it in a big way: by fighting Jorge Masvidal at the Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium.

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Diaz, the 36-year-old older brother of Nate Diaz, also called on UFC President Dana White to set up the fight in the ESPN interview in which he announced his comeback. According to the South China Morning Post, Nick Diaz’s manager Kevin Mubenga confirmed that his client wished for the comeback bout to be held in Arlington, Texas.

“You know, it’s on you Dana,” Diaz told ESPN’ Ariel Helwani. “It’s on you, UFC. … that’s on them. It’s in your hands now. Cowboy Stadium.”

Nick Diaz, a former welterweight champion in WEC and Strikeforce, last fought in January 2015, when he lost to Anderson Silva by unanimous decision at UFC 183. However, Nate Diaz lost to Masvidal at UFC 244 in New York City earlier this month. Masvidal took the “BMF” belt after winning the bout via a third-round TKO. The fight proved to be controversial, as the medical professional in charge ruled Diaz should stop competing due to two severe cuts near his eye.

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Given the ending of the fight, Nick Diaz went after Masvidal, saying he hopes to defeat the AFC Welterweight champion, who also holds the record for the fastest knockout in UFC history. Diaz particularly took issue with Masvidal’s post-match comments about the former fighter’s brother.

“You want to talk about baptizing my younger brother?” said Nick Diaz. “That’s on you. Like, you don’t talk about baptizing my younger brother, so you’re already in a f—ing position if you fight with me.”
“You don’t f—ing talk about baptizing someone’s younger brother. That’s my baby brother. You don’t talk like that to nobody.”

However, Diaz also revealed how hungry he is to return to the Octagon by saying he is willing to fight other opponents as well.

“I’ll fight anybody,” Nick Diaz told Helwani. “This guy [Masvidal] can do anything he wants to do right now to make the most money possible.”

After a petition to lift Nick Diaz‘s MMA ban garnered over 100,000 signatures, the White House issued an official response. But even they, perhaps predictably, are unable to do anything about the suspension.

“The federal government plays no role in the disciplinary actions taken by state athletic commissions, so we are not in a position to address the specific request raised in your petition. State – in this case, the Nevada Athletic Commission – will generally be the best source for information about those kinds of issues,” said the White House in response to the petition.

In January, a post-fight drug test revealed that Diaz had marijuana metabolites in his system. On September the Nevada State Athletic Commission suspended Diaz for five years and fined him $165,000.

Despite the White House’s response, there seems to be progress on the legal front. Diaz posted in Instagram photo about his legal team working on his behalf and, in October, legal correspondent Amy Dardashtian tweeted that a settlement could be worked out sooner rather than later.

Photo: Nick Diaz (L) and Anderson Silva trade punches in their middleweight bout during UFC 183 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on January 31, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Silva won by unanimous decision. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images)

After previous reports about Anderson Silva failing his first out-of-fight drug test on Jan. 9, it appears that the fighter also failed a test directly after the match on Jan. 31. The second drug test came back positive for drostanolone one of the two banned substances linked to the initial test — the other being androstane.

The Jan. 9 test was the first time Silva ever failed one in his nearly two decade career. He was allowed to fight because the results were not known until after the Diaz match-up — Diaz also failed due to traces of marijuana. At the same time, in between the two tests, his Jan. 19 sample came back negative; the famed fighter still claims his innocence, but still faces a nine month suspension for the initial failure.

NSAC director Bob Bennett is troubled by the schedule of the failed tests, “Something I find particularly concerning is that he tested positive on Jan. 9 and then he tested negative on Jan. 19. If he took this orally, it only stays in your system 5 to 7 days. So, obviously, he used it sometime around Jan. 9 and then he used it shortly before the night of the fight. Whether the commission finds this egregious — that he tested positive twice out of three times — is up to them. I certainly find it concerning and unacceptable.”

Bennett also does not know if NSAC will worsen the punishment for the second failed test. A disciplinary hearing is likely to be scheduled for sometime in March. It is also unsure whether Silva’s representatives will force NSAC to test the “B sample.”

In semi-shocking news, it has been announced that UFC 183 headliners Nick Diaz and Anderson Silva each failed a drug test. Now, the match was seen as a return to dominant form for Silva after breaking his leg against Chris Weidman in 2013: he unanimously defeated Diaz to secure his 34th victory.

Now, the shocking revelation about Silva was announced: he failed a drug test for the first time in his storied career. The positive results were from a random out-of-competition test on Jan. 9, which according to ESPN tested positive for steroid drostanolone and androstane. The reason the fight was not canceled is because the NSAC did not get the results until Tuesday morning and only notified the UFC then.

As a result, the fighting organization released a statement regarding this latest discovery, “UFC’s understanding is that further testing will be conducted by the commission to confirm these preliminary results. Anderson Silva has been an amazing champion and a true ambassador of the sport of mixed martial arts and the UFC, in Brazil as well as around the world. UFC is disappointed to learn of these initial results.”

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The 39-year-old was counted out after his horrific leg injury against Chris Weidman: that is why his return against Diaz was such a moneymaker for the UFC. There is no word how bad this positive test will hurt his legacy because he is still arguably one of the most dominant ever in the sport: remaining undefeated from 2006-2012 with ten consecutive title defenses.

Now of course, Silva has completely denied the usage: his doctor has released a statement, “Anderson told me he’s disappointed, upset because he didn’t use steroids. He will ask for the confirmation test because he believes the only explanation is a contamination or a mistake from the lab. He told me: ‘I have an impeccable career history and I wouldn’t want to tarnish my image.’”

On the less surprising side of the issue, Nick Diaz has failed his post-fight drug test: it appears traces of marijuana was in his system. According to ESPN, “exact results were unavailable, but confirmed Diaz’s results were above the allowable limit of 150 ng/ML.” This would be the third time the 31-year-old fighter has tested positive for marijuana, with the first happening in 2007 and the most recent in 2012 — with the latter resulting in a one year suspension from the NSAC.