Preview: UFC Fight Night 208 Prelims

Lightweights

Marc Diakiese (15-5 | 6-5 UFC) vs. Damir Hadzovic (14-6 | 4-4)

Odds: Diakiese (-330), Hadzovic (+275)

It's good to see Marc Diakiese back to his winning ways, since "Bonecrusher" is still somehow only just 29 years old and could yet make another charge up the ladder. Diakiese gained a rightful amount of hype on the British scene, overwhelming opponents and putting together a string of knockouts ahead of his 2016 UFC debut. Diakiese was then able to lean on his physicality for a while longer - this time mostly getting by thanks to his wrestling - but hit a clear plateau with a three-fight losing streak across 2017 and 2018. To his credit, Diakiese has put in a ton of work to improve his craft, though some recent results still had him at risk of sliding out of the UFC; a 2020 defeat to Rafael Fiziev has aged well, but a subsequent flash submission loss to Rafael Alves had Diakiese badly needing a win in March against Viacheslav Borshchev. Diakiese completed his assignment in about the ugliest way possible, grinding out a victory with a control-heavy wrestling approach, but a win's a win and gave Diakiese some much-needed momentum heading into this fight against Damir Hadzovic. Hadzovic came to the UFC mostly as a brawler, but "The Bosnian Bomber" has rounded things out during his six years and change on the roster; Hadzovic's still mostly known as an action fighter, but can at least mix things up and lean on his wrestling when the opportunity presents itself. Defense in general is still a concern, however - so while Hadzovic may make things tough for Diakiese on the feet, Diakiese is both historically durable and quite capable of exploiting Hadzovic's typically subpar takedown defense. The main question here seems to be whether Diakiese can find a knockout or is forced to make this a grind; the pick is Diakiese via decision.

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