Cyrille Moktar Diabaté (born October 6, 1973) is a retired French

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

and kickboxer. He has also competed in

shoot boxing , commonly written as Shootboxing, is a combat sport. Shoot boxing is also a stand-up fighting promotion company based in Tokyo, Japan. The organization was founded by former kickboxer Caesar Takeshi in 1985. Shootboxing, the combat sport, ...

and

Muay Thai Muay Thai or Muaythai (, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, the Art of Eight Limbs or the Science of Eight Limbs, is a Thai martial art and full-contact combat sport that uses stand-up striking, sweeps, and various clinch fighting, cl ...

. He has fought at

Palace Fighting Championship Palace Fighting Championship (PFC) was a mixed martial arts (MMA) organization based in the United States that was created in 2007 by Christian Printup. It ceased operations in 2009. In 2001, Printup helped promotional newcomers Reed Harris and ...

, Tachi Palace Fights,

PRIDE Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

, ShoXC,

Deep Deep or The Deep may refer to: Places United States * Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia * Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah * Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania * Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary ...

, Cage Rage and the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

Mixed martial arts career

Pride Fighting Championships

Diabaté then faced off against Maurício Rua at Pride Final Conflict Absolute. After 5:29 of the first round, Rua defeated Diabaté via TKO (stomps). This loss led to Diabaté heading for smaller organizations. His first fight was in England, for the Cage Rage promotion. He defeated Ryan Robinson via armbar and followed this up with a blood-soaked decision victory in a ShoXC card, where he faced Jaime Fletcher. Diabaté defeated Marcus Hicks via submission (armbar) after just 89 seconds. This win was his fourth in a row and was followed up by a win over Rob Smith via submission.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Cyrille appeared frequently as a striking coach for Team Henderson in season 9 of

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

. It was announced in February 2010 that Diabaté had signed a four fight contract with the UFC. In his debut at UFC 114 he defeated Luiz Cané via TKO in the first round. Diabaté later expressed disappointment in his own performance, having had to "survive a flash knockout" early in the first round. In his second appearance, Diabaté lost to Alexander Gustafsson on October 16, 2010, at

UFC 120 ''UFC 120: Bisping vs. Akiyama'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 16, 2010, at the O2 Arena in London, United Kingdom. The card featured six televised MMA bouts, as well as four un-aired preli ...

. In the fight, he was dominated by the Swede for the entire first round standing, and in the second round he was taken down early and submitted with a rear naked choke. This was his first loss in four years. For his third UFC fight, Diabaté faced Steve Cantwell on March 3, 2011, at UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Diabaté fought Anthony Perosh on November 5, 2011, at

UFC 138 ''UFC 138: Leben vs. Muñoz'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 5, 2011 at LG Arena in Birmingham, United Kingdom. The event aired on the same day, via tape delay, on Spike TV in the United ...

. He lost the bout against Perosh via submission due to a rear naked choke in the second round. Diabaté was expected to face

Jörgen Kruth Jörgen Ingmar Kruth (born May 8, 1974) is a retired Swedish professional kickboxer and mixed martial artist. He is a former two time World Muay Thai Council Heavyweight Muaythai World Champion. He is considered to be among the gre ...

on April 14, 2012, at

UFC on Fuel TV 2 ''UFC on Fuel TV: Gustafsson vs. Silva'' (also known as ''UFC on Fuel TV 2'' or ''UFC: Sweden'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on April 14, 2012, at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. Back ...

. However, Kruth was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by

Tom DeBlass Tom DeBlass (born May 14, 1982) is an American Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner, submission grappler and mixed martial artist currently signed to ONE Championship. He has competed in the middleweight division for Bellator and the Ultimate Figh ...

. Diabaté won the fight via majority decision. Diabaté was briefly linked to a bout with

Fabio Maldonado Fabio is a given name descended from Latin ''Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented in Portuguese as ''Fábio'' (with t ...

on November 17, 2012, at UFC 154. However, Maldonado was pulled from the bout and faced

Glover Teixeira Glover Lucas Teixeira (; born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian-American former professional mixed martial artist. He competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweig ...

on October 13, 2012, at

UFC 153 ''UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 13, 2012, at the HSBC Arena (Rio de Janeiro), HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Background Vitor Belfort was expec ...

, replacing an injured

Quinton Jackson Quinton Ramone Jackson (born June 20, 1978), known by his ring name of Rampage Jackson, is an American rapper, former mixed martial artist, actor, kickboxer, and professional wrestler. During the course of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career, ...

. Diabaté instead faced Chad Griggs at the event. Diabate defeated Griggs via first round rear naked choke submission. Diabaté faced Jimi Manuwa on February 16, 2013, at UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald. Manuwa was declared the winner (TKO) after Diabaté was unable to continue after tearing a calf muscle near the end of the first round. Diabaté faced Ilir Latifi at

UFC Fight Night 37 ''UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Manuwa'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 37'') was a mixed martial arts event held on March 8, 2014, at The O2 Arena in London, England. The event was shown live in the UK on Channel 5 and BT Sport and in the ...

. Before the fight, Diabaté announced he will retire from MMA regardless of the bout's outcome. He lost the fight via submission in the first round. After his loss to Latifi, Diabaté made his retirement from combat sports official.

Kickboxing record (Incomplete)

, - , , Win ,

Michael Bisping Michael Gavin Joseph Bisping (; born 28 February 1979) is an English former mixed martial artist, sports commentator, analyst, and actor. He competed in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship ( ...

, CWFC: Strike Force 1 ,

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

, West Midlands, England , Decision (Unanimous) , align="center", 4 , align="center", 3:00 , - , , Loss , Aleksandr Pitchkounov , Ichigeki Paris 2005 ,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France , Decision (Unanimous) , align="center", 5 , align="center", 3:00 , - , , Loss , Alexey Ignashov , MT ONE ,

Saint-Pierre, Réunion Saint-Pierre (; ) is the third-largest communes of France, commune in the France, French Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of Réunion. Located on the southwest side of the island, it is the headquarters ...

, Decision , align="center", 5 , align="center", 3:00 , - , , Loss ,

Petar Majstorović Petar Majstorovic (born 5 February 1975), is a Swiss karateka and kickboxer. He was a two-time World Kickboxing Network (W.K.N.) World Champion and two times K-1 preliminary tournaments champion in Croatia and Germany. He trained with Andy Hug fr ...

, K-1 Spain Grand Prix 2003 in Barcelona ,

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, Spain , Decision (Unanimous) , align="center", 3 , align="center", 3:00 , - , , Win , Damián García , K-1 Spain Grand Prix 2003 in Barcelona ,

, Spain , KO (Strikes) , align="center", 1 , align="center", N/A , - , , Win ,

Lee Hasdell Lee Hasdell (born 13 December 1966)Sherdog profile
Retrieved 4 April 2019Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan , TKO (Doctor Stoppage) , align="center", 4 , align="center", 2:18 , - , , Win , Rick Roufus , I.S.K.A. Championship ,

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, Nevada, United States , TKO (Doctor Stoppage) , align="center", 3 , align="center", 3:00 , - , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, , Ilir Latifi , Submission (ninja choke) , UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Manuwa , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:02 ,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 19–9–1 , Jimi Manuwa , TKO (retirement) , UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 19–8–1 , Chad Griggs , Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC 154 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:24 ,

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 18–8–1 ,

, Decision (majority) , UFC on Fuel TV: Gustafsson vs. Silva , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, Sweden , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–8–1 , Anthony Perosh , Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:09 ,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 17–7–1 , Steve Cantwell , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–7–1 , Alexander Gustafsson , Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:41 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 16–6–1 , Luiz Cané , TKO (punches) , UFC 114 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:13 ,

, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–6–1 , Rob Smith , Submission (rear-naked choke) , TPF 2: Brawl in the Hall , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:47 ,

Lemoore, California Lemoore (formerly La Tache and Lee Moore's) is a city in Kings County, California, United States. Lemoore is located west-southwest of Hanford, at an elevation of . It is part of the Hanford-Corcoran Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA Code 252 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–6–1 , Marcus Hicks , Submission (armbar) , AMMA 1: First Blood , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:29 ,

Edmonton, Alberta Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 13–6–1 , Lodune Sincaid , TKO (doctor stoppage) , PFC 12: High Stakes , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:15 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–6–1 , Jaime Fletcher , Decision (unanimous) , ShoXC: Hamman vs. Suganuma 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Friant, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–6–1 , Ryan Robinson , Submission (armbar) , Cage Rage 21 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:15 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–6–1 , Maurício Rua , TKO (stomps) , Pride FC - Final Conflict Absolute , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:29 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 10–5–1 ,

Yasuhito Namekawa (born October 27, 1974) is a Japanese mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division. Namekawa made his mixed martial arts debut for Fighting Network RINGS in 1998. He fought in mainly shootfighting bouts until 1999 when ...

, KO (flying knee) , Real Rhythm: 4th Stage , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:50 ,

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–5–1 ,

, KO (punches) , Deep: 24 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:22 ,

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–5–1 , Takahiro Oba , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Real Rhythm: 3rd Stage , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:47 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7–5–1 , Mu Jin-Na , KO (head kick and punches) , Real Rhythm: 2nd Stage , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:28 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–5–1 , Fábio Piamonte , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , Cage Rage 12 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:09 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–4–1 ,

Renato Sobral Renato Sobral da Cunha (; born 7 September 1975), also known as "Babalu", is a retired Brazilian Luta Livre submission grappler, mixed martial artist, and was the former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion. Sobral previously fought in the U ...

, Submission (guillotine choke) , Cage Rage 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:38 ,

, England , Return to

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

. , - , Loss , align=center, 6–3–1 , Arman Gambaryan , Decision (unanimous) , M-1 MFC: Middleweight GP , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

, Russia ,

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

debut. , - , Loss , align=center, 6–2–1 , Rodney Glunder , Decision (unanimous) , 2 Hot 2 Handle , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:00 ,

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

, Netherlands ,

debut. , - , Win , align=center, 6–1–1 , James Žikic , Decision (unanimous) , EF 1: Genesis , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , London, England , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1–1 , Dave Vader , Submission (triangle choke) , 2H2H 6: Simply the Best 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:40 ,

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

, Netherlands , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1–1 , Bob Schrijber , Decision , 2H2H 5: Simply the Best 5 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:00 ,

, Netherlands , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1–1 , Matt Frye , KO (punches) , Cage Wars 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–1–1 , Josh Dempsey , Decision , Cage Wars 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, England , , - , Draw , align=center, 2–0–1 , Rodney Glunder , Draw , Rings Holland: No Guts, No Glory , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Netherlands , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Andre Juskevicius , KO (punches) , Golden Trophy 2000 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:49 ,

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and Ryuta Sakurai Ryuta Sakurai (born September 8, 1971) is a Japanese mixed martial artist who currently competes in the middleweight division. A veteran who fought for many companies such as Shooto, Pancrase and PRIDE. Nicknamed Mr. DEEP, he is best known f ...

, TKO (punches) , Golden Trophy 1999 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A , France ,

References

External links

*
Official UFC Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diabate, Cyrille 1973 births Living people Black French sportspeople French sportspeople of Senegalese descent French male mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai French male kickboxers Heavyweight kickboxers French male Muay Thai practitioners Sportspeople from Yvelines Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters