Former British champion Marc Diakiese will be a part of the lucrative UFC International Fight Week, with the news that he will fight fellow undefeated lightweight Drakkar Klose.
The fight will take place on July 7, as part of The Ultimate Fighter 25: Redemption Finale from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The event will serve as a prologue for UFC 213 on July 8, which will see the TUF 25 coaches Cody Garbrandt (UFC bantamweight champion) and T.J. Dillashaw square off.
Diakiese (12-0) vs. Klose (7-0-1) was announced by the UFC on Wednesday.
Two undefeated records on the line! Brit @Marc_Diakiese vs. @drakkarklose at #TUFFinale! pic.twitter.com/PIdujBAzT1
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) April 26, 2017
Diakiese’s return to the Octagon on July 7 sees him compete for the first time in four months, following his 30-second destruction of Teemu Packalen at UFC London. It was a knockout which earned “Bonecrusher” a $50,000 bonus from the UFC brass.
After some comments from the ASW team member post fight at UFC London, many believed that the UFC would capitalise on his comments and book a fight with Paul Felder on the July 16 event in Glasgow.
However, UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby has chosen an alternative route for the highly touted Brit, as he now competes nine days earlier in Las Vegas, Nevada. The bout marks Diakiese’s fourth UFC contest, with this set to be his second in the United States of America.
Meanwhile, fellow unbeaten prospect Klose fights inside the Octagon for the second time in his career, following a decision over Devin Powell at UFC Fight Night 103.
29-year-old Klose trains out of the MMA Lab, which houses the likes of Jamie Varner, Benson Henderson and John Moraga.
Diakiese vs. Klose is the fourth fight to be added to the TUF 25: Redemption Finale, with other bouts including: Gray Maynard vs. Teruto Ishihara, Elias Theodorou vs. Brad Tavares and Jared Cannonier vs. Steve Bossé.
