Scott Askham’s teammate Marc Diakiese on their KO rivalry: ‘If I get a knockout he’s gonna get a knockout!’
Newly-signed UFC lightweight will be part of Scott Askham's team at UFC Hamburg and says he's backing his teammate for another KO win
EXPECT Scott Askham to claim another spectacular knockout win at UFC Fight Night in Hamburg.
That's the view of his teammate at Atherton Submission Wrestling Marc Diakiese, whose own rise up the domestic ranks saw him snapped up by the UFC earlier this summer.
Here in Hamburg Diakiese is picking up some valuable fight week experience as part of Askham's team.
And the lightweight star is backing his middleweight counterpart to deliver the goods once again on German soil when he faces Jack Hermansson on Saturday night.
"It's looking good. He's looking real well," he explained.
"I haven't got much to say (about his gameplan), but I know he's going to go out there - he's hungry. He's got the same mentality as me - he's out there looking to get the win. That's why we fight."
Diakiese revealed the competitive rivalry between the pair has helped spur each other on to knockout success, explaining that they each have to match the other's performance.
Askham landed a spectacular walk-off head-kick knockout on Chris Dempsey in his last outing, and Diakiese followed suit in his next fight, starching Kane Mousah as he defended his BAMMA Lonsdale lightweight title in spectacular fashion.
And with the personal knockout competition in full flow, the hard-hitting lightweight says he expects another finish from his teammate this weekend.
"This is why we work, me and Scott," he explained.
"If I get a knockout he's gonna get a knockout. It's a game that we play, me and him!
"He's gonna go out there, do his job, and get the win."
Diakiese's maiden UFC bout hasn't yet been confirmed, but the relaxed lightweight says Octagon jitters won't be a concern as he heads towards his Octagon debut.
"I'm worried about NOTHING!" he grinned.
"I'm worried about getting there (and) doing some crazy stuff.
"I'm going to go in there and you're going to see the same reaction, the same thing, that I've been doing in my last few fights."
And that means knockouts. The heavy-handed Brit starched his last two opponents in a combined one minute with two of the most emphatic one-punch KOs you could ever wish to see.
Now he plans on bringing that spectacular fight-ending punch power to the biggest stage in MMA, and he can't wait.
"They are gonna land, those shots. You're gonna see them," he smiled.
"One shot and you're out! Expect them to come!"
