Marc Diakiese out-wrestles Damir Hadzovic to UD victory at UFC London
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to us today, July 23, 2022, for UFC Fight Night 208, going down live from the o2 Arena in London, England.
Headlining the event is a heavyweight clash of contenders between no. 4 Curtis Blaydes (16-3) and no. 6 Tom Aspinall (12-2), and co-headlining is a middleweight contest between Jack Hermansson (22-7) and Chris Curtis (29-8).
Our preliminary co-main event came in the lightweight division between English striker Marc Diakiese (15-5) and Yugoslavian talent Damir Hadzovic (14-6).
Hadzovic is coming off a win over Yancy Medeiros, which snapped his two-fight losing skid, and Diakiese is coming off a win over former professional kickboxer Vlacheslav Borschev, also snapping his two-fight losing skid in the process.
Continue reading to see how this 155 lb encounter went down:
Official Result: Marc Diakiese def. Damir Hadzovic via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
Diakiese comes out feinting and shoots right in on a takedown, which he secures, and remains on top for over four minutes of the first round. Most of us know him as a crafty, flashy striker, but his ground game has been improving leaps and bounds as of late.
Just as he did to Borschev, it appears his gameplan in this fight is to wrestle.
More of the same happens in the second, as Diakiese secures another takedown early on in the round. With 40 seconds left in the middle stretch, the two are stood up, where Diakiese attempts another double leg.
Hadzovic’s defense holds up this time however, and Diakiese is forced to used his striking for the final 30 or so seconds, which also looks great.
Diakiese finishes out the third round just the same as the first two, by absolutely mauling Hadzovic throughout.
Though it may not be the most entertaining performance, Marc Diakiese has won his last two fights with his wrestling.
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