Former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz says he’s been “in love with being an MMA fighter,” but he’s typically just been in the right place, at the right time when it comes to stepping inside the cage.

Speaking on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour on Monday, the Stockton bad boy explained that he typically took fights because no one else wanted to do it (transcription per Bloody Elbow).

"I look back and think about why did I take one of these, you know, mediocre level opponents or fights, or something like that. I could see myself going, I didn't need to do that, I didn't need to go there. I'm not fanatical or in love with being an MMA fighter,” Diaz said.

“It's just: I'm the right guy for the job nowadays. Pretty much after my first couple pro fights I wound up being the right guy for the job, so that's why I'm still here, and I'll fight the right fights if I have the opportunity."

Diaz returns to the Octagon at UFC 183, where he makes his middleweight debut against a tough customer in longtime divisional kingpin Anderson Silva.

The Cesar Gracie Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt hasn’t fought since UFC 158 in March of last year, where he lost a lopsided decision to then-welterweight titleholder Georges St-Pierre.

Meanwhile, Silva was unable to compete in 2014 after suffering a devastating leg injury against current champ Chris Weidman at UFC 168 in December.