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Nate Diaz closed out UFC 279 with a fourth-round submission win over Tony Ferguson in the main event from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Leg kicks were the story of the first round. Both tried to establish some of their boxing, but the biggest development came with the gash that Diaz opened on Ferguson's shin when he checked a leg kick.

Things got really interesting by the third round. Diaz found some success with his boxing combinations, and Ferguson had moments of his own with kicks. Both fighters engaged in some theatrics, including El Cucuy laying down in the middle of the cage.

From there, business started picking up as Diaz turned up the heat with his boxing, and Ferguson resorted to a takedown.

It proved to be a costly miscalculation as Diaz locked in the guillotine that ended the night.

It's quite possibly the last time UFC fans will see Nate Diaz in the Octagon. The 37-year-old had just one fight on his contract, and UFC president Dana White sounded like a man who knew he was losing a draw.

"He's fought incredible wars for us," White told Yahoo's Kevin Iole. "He's been a big part of this company for a very long time. What more could I ask of Nate Diaz? I wish him all the best in the world. It's been fun."

Diaz—and his brother Nick—have been unique characters in the world of MMA with a rabid following for their willingness to be open in interviews and exciting in the cage.

If it is the end, it's a fitting conclusion to his UFC career. He developed a reputation for being willing to fight anyone, anywhere, and that attitude played out this weekend. The original main event between Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev was scrapped when Chimaev weighed 7.5 pounds over the maximum allowance at welterweight.

Diaz saved the main event by being willing to fight Ferguson, a former lightweight title challenger.

Whether Diaz officially retires, forays into boxing, fights for another MMA promotion or comes back to the UFC will be interesting. With a win over Ferguson, there will be interest in whatever he does next.

Khamzat Chimaev finished a turbulent weekend on a positive note with a first-round submission win over Kevin Holland in the co-main event of UFC 279 from Las Vegas.

The action was fast and furious from the start, as Chimaev immediately jumped on a takedown attempt at the opening bell, and Holland was forced to scramble just to survive.

While he was successful for a bit, the inevitability of Chimaev was too much. He latched on to a D'Arce choke, and while it had to be reapplied a few times, he locked it in and drew the tap from Holland.

The win keeps Chimaev from a disastrous weekend, but it's hard to consider him a winner all things considered. Chimaev was given a golden opportunity to show off his skills against a relatively big draw in Nate Diaz as the headliner.

Instead, he was relegated to fighting Holland after weighing 7.5 pounds over the 171-pound allowance in the welterweight division.

UFC President Dana White shed some light on why Chimaev missed weight so badly.

"He was very, very lean already, and he should have come in on weight," White told reporters. "He started to cut weight, and he started locking up and cramping and all the things that happen from a bad cut."

Regardless, Chimaev kept his winning streak alive despite the last-minute opponent change.

It does open up questions about what happens next for the 28-year-old. Chimaev seemed like a lock for a title shot with a win at UFC 279, but now there's the question of whether he can continue making the cut down to 170 pounds.

This is the first time he has missed weight in the UFC, but at 6'2", he's a big welterweight.

As long as he can prove this was a one-time fluke, he's likely to continue his ascent as a UFC star.