Marc Diakiese (born 16 March 1993) is an English professional

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 ...

who is signed with the

Professional Fighters League The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) promot ...

(PFL) as a

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...

. He formerly competed for 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 ( ...

and Caged Steel and

BAMMA BAMMA (British Association of Mixed Martial Arts) was a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United Kingdom. It premiered on June 27, 2009, and was shown on the television channel Bravo. BAMMA events were shown live on ITV4 in the UK and I ...

Background

Aged 17, Diakiese began training in mixed martial arts to keep fit and stay out of trouble. Before turning professional, he worked as a railway engineer. Diakiese was also a promising footballer before committing to mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

As an amateur, Diakiese went 9–0 and simultaneously held three different titles. He turned professional in 2013 after struggling to find willing opponents.

BAMMA

After four wins in under a year in regional promotions, Diakiese joined

on a five-fight contract in 2014. In September, he made his promotional debut against Jefferson George at BAMMA 16 and won the fight by unanimous decision. In December, he beat Vernon O'Neill via unanimous decision at BAMMA 17. In March 2015, Diakiese faced Jack McGann at BAMMA 19 for the vacant Lightweight Championship. He won the fight by unanimous decision. In September, he defended his title at BAMMA 22 with a knockout 24 seconds into the first round against Rick Selvarajah. In February 2016, Diakiese signed a new deal with the promotion. Three months later, he successfully defended his title for a second time with another first round knockout. Diakiese finished Kane Mousah in 36 seconds at BAMMA 25 and subsequently earned a UFC contract.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Diakiese was scheduled to make his UFC debut against Reza Madadi on 8 October 2016 at UFC 204. However, Madadi withdrew from the bout due to an eye injury and was replaced by Łukasz Sajewski. After being smothered by his opponent in the first round, Diakiese came back to win the fight by TKO due to knees and punches near the end of the second round. Diakiese returned to face Frankie Perez on 9 December 2016 at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Abdurakhimov. Despite losing the second round, Diakiese would go on to win the bout by unanimous decision. Diakiese faced Teemu Packalén on 18 March 2017 at UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson. He won the fight via knockout 30 seconds into the first round. The win earned Diakiese his first ''Performance of the Night'' bonus. Diakiese faced Drakkar Klose on 7 July 2017 at The Ultimate Fighter 25 Finale. He lost the fight by split decision. Diakiese faced Dan Hooker on 30 December 2017 at

UFC 219 ''UFC 219: Cyborg vs. Holm'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on December 30, 2017, at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas–Paradise, NV MSA, Las Vegas metropolitan area. ...

. He lost the fight via guillotine choke submission in the third round. Diakiese faced Nasrat Haqparast on 22 July 2018 at UFC Fight Night 134. He lost the fight via unanimous decision after being knocked down multiple times during the bout. Diakiese faced Joseph Duffy on 16 March 2019 at UFC Fight Night 147. He won the fight by unanimous decision. In May 2019, Diakiese revealed on his social media that he had signed a new, multi-fight contract with the UFC. Diakiese faced Lando Vannata on 28 September 2019 at UFC Fight Night 160. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Diakiese was scheduled to face

Stevie Ray Laslon "Lash" Steven Huffman (born August 22, 1958) is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Stevie Ray. Stevie Ray is best known for his seven-year tenure with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 199 ...

on 21 March 2020 at UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Edwards. However, Ray was removed from the card late-January for undisclosed reasons. Diakiese was expected to remain on the card against promotional newcomer Jai Herbert. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the event was eventually postponed . Instead Diakiese was scheduled to face Alan Patrick on 19 July 2020 at

UFC Fight Night 172 ''UFC Fight Night: Figueiredo vs. Benavidez 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 172'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 30'' and ''UFC Fight Island 2'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 19, 2020 ...

. However, on 14 June, Patrick withdrew from the event for unknown reason and he was replaced by Rafael Fiziev. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award. Diakiese was scheduled to face Rafael Alves on 4 September 2021 at UFC Fight Night 191. However, Alves pulled out of the fight in mid-August for undisclosed reasons and in turn, Diakiese was removed from the card as well. In turn, the pair was rescheduled at UFC Fight Night 197 on 13 November 2021. Diakiese lost the bout via guillotine choke submission in the first round. Diakiese faced Viacheslav Borshchev on 26 March 2022 at UFC on ESPN 33. He won the fight by unanimous decision after controlling Borshchev on the ground for nearly twelve and a half minutes. As the first bout of his new four-fight contract, Diakiese faced Damir Hadžović on 23 July 2022 at UFC Fight Night 208. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Diakiese faced Michael Johnson on 3 December 2022 at

UFC on ESPN 42 ''UFC on ESPN: Thompson vs. Holland'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 42'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 3, 2022, at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, United States. B ...

. He lost the bout via unanimous decision. Diakiese faced Joel Álvarez on 22 July 2023 at UFC Fight Night 224. He lost the fight via brabo submission in the second round. Diakiese faced Kauê Fernandes on 4 November 2023 at UFC Fight Night 231. He won the fight via split decision.

Professional Fighters League

It was reported on 8 June 2024 that Diakiese signed with the

(PFL) and will compete this year. In his debut for the promotion, Diakiese faced Tim Wilde on 14 September 2024 at Bellator Champions Series 5. He won the fight by unanimous decision. On January 15, 2025, it was announced that Diakiese joined the 2025 PFL World Tournament in a lightweight division. In the quarterfinal, Diakiese faced Gadzhi Rabadanov on April 18, 2025, at PFL 3. He lost the fight via knockout in round one.

Professional grappling career

Diakiese faced Benoît Saint Denis in the no gi main event of ADXC 4 on May 18, 2024. He lost the match by unanimous decision.

Personal life

In 2017, he became the first UFC fighter to pose for ''

Gay Times ''Gay Times'' (stylized in all caps), also known as ''GAY TIMES Magazine'' and as ''GT'', is a UK-based LGBTQ+ magazine established in 1984. Originally a magazine for gay and bisexual men, the company began including content for the LGBTQ+ comm ...

'', an

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

publication. Diakiese has a son and a daughter.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

** Performance of the Night (One time) ** Fight of the Night (One time) **UFC.com Awards ***2016: Ranked #6 Newcomer of the Year ***2017: Ranked #8 Knockout of the Year *

** BAMMA Lonsdale British Lightweight Championship (One time) ***Two successful title defenses *Cage Kumite **Cage Kumite Lightweight Championship (One time) *MMA Total Combat **MMATC Lightweight Championship (One time) *MMADNA.nl **2016 European Newcomer of the Year

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 18–8 , Gadzhi Rabadanov , KO (punches) , PFL 3 (2025) , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:32 ,

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

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São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–7 , Joel Álvarez , Submission (brabo choke) , UFC Fight Night: Aspinall vs. Tybura , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:26 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–6 , Michael Johnson , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Thompson vs. Holland , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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, England , , - , Win , align=center, 15–5 , Viacheslav Borschev , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Blaydes vs. Daukaus , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–5 , Rafael Alves , Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. Rodríguez , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:48 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada 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 ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–4 , Rafael Fiziev , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Figueiredo vs. Benavidez 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

, United Arab Emirates , , - , Win , align=center, 14–3 , Lando Vannata , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Cannonier , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, Denmark , , - , Win , align=center, 13–3 , Joseph Duffy , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–3 , Nasrat Haqparast , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, Germany , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–2 , Dan Hooker , Submission (guillotine choke) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:42 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–1 , Drakkar Klose , Decision (split) , The Ultimate Fighter: Redemption Finale , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–0 , Teemu Packalén , KO (punch) , UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:30 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 11–0 , Frankie Perez , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Abdurakhimov , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

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Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 9–0 , Kane Mousah , KO (punch) , BAMMA 25 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:36 ,

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, 8–0 , Rick Selvarajah , KO (punch) , BAMMA 22 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:24 ,

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Jack McGann , Decision (unanimous) , BAMMA 19 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Vernon O'Neil , Decision (unanimous) , BAMMA 17 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Jefferson George , Decision (unanimous) , BAMMA 16 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Danny Welsh , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Caged Steel FC 8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:16 ,

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Jakob Grzegorzek , Decision (unanimous) , Caged Steel FC 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Tom Earnshaw , TKO (punches) , Cage Kumite 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:52 ,

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Harris Neofytou , TKO (punches) , MMA Total Combat 55 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:27 , Spennymoor, England , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Diakiese, Marc 1993 births Living people English male mixed martial artists English practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu English people of Democratic Republic of the Congo descent Sportspeople of Democratic Republic of the Congo descent Democratic Republic of the Congo emigrants to England Democratic Republic of the Congo male mixed martial artists Democratic Republic of the Congo practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Martial artists from Kinshasa Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters 21st-century English sportsmen 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo sportsmen