It was a victory worthy of a little time off, but almost as soon as Marc Diakiese scored a second round knockout of Lukasz Sajewski last Saturday night in Manchester, England, the 23-year-old was back in the gym.

He wasn’t there to get ready for the possibility of a short notice call-up or to brag about his Octagon debut. Instead, the nicest young man to carry around the nickname “Bonecrusher” was teaching the kids’ class. And it was a full house for the UFC’s newest rising star.

Diakiese UNLEASHES a barrage of strikes on Sajewski to get the finish! #UFC204 https://t.co/C6Cb3aTv2U

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) October 9, 2016

“I had a full class today, and it’s a nice feeling to see kids that happy like that,” he said on Tuesday. “It’s like I’ve given them something.”

Diakiese, a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo who now makes his home in Doncaster and trains with the ASW team in Manchester, did give them something. Those kids got to see that anything and everything is possible with determination and hard work, and that when you put those two items together, last Saturday night is what happens.

So being back in the gym after a big win is no surprise.

“I’m away with family over Christmas, so now it’s just about going back to the gym and focusing on other stuff,” he said. “I’m just relaxing, but doing a bit just to keep in shape.”

In addition to the light work in the gym and teaching, Diakiese is also soaking in the positive notices he received after his win over Sajewski, even if everything hasn’t truly hit him yet.

“I feel like I need someone to fight to re-live it again and go back to it,” he laughs. “It’s not sunk in yet. But it was amazing. I couldn’t think of a better feeling than that.”

It almost went downhill fast, as Diakiese raced out of his corner at the start of the bout, only to be promptly put on the mat by a Sajewski takedown. All of a sudden, the British knockout artist who had ended his last two pre-UFC bouts in a combined 60 seconds was on his back and in danger of being kept there by his opponent. Diakiese wasn’t too concerned.

“The first thing I thought when he took me down was, ‘Oh crap, I rushed in a little bit here,’” he said. “So I was like, okay, it’s the UFC, I know he’s going to be strong, so I didn’t really want to waste energy, I was just waiting to see his next move. I thought, stay calm, relax, and see the next move. I know not many people can hold me down, so I knew that any move that he makes, I’ll just explode back up and go again. I notice he was trying to go for my back, and that’s why I took the half guard and tried to get up. So I wasn’t really worried. I was just making sure I don’t mess up, because obviously the UFC is a different level.”

Apparently so is Marc Diakiese, who got to his feet and proceeded to answer back with a thudding slam of his foe.

“The slam was punishment for trying to get my neck,” Diakiese laughs. “You don’t take my neck like that; I’ll pick you up and slam you.”

Sajewski would secure a second takedown, but Diakiese was back on his feet by the end of the first stanza, and in round two, he lowered the boom. But what may have been most impressive was the way he picked his shots and surgically finished Sajewski, showing off a level of fighting maturity not evident in too many 23-year-olds with less than a dozen pro fights.

“I think it’s just experience and training with different people,” he said. “I do a lot of boxing with boxers, and I know if you’re not patient and you rush, that’s when you get tired with them. I relax and start going for it slowly, because when you rush, that’s when you get clipped. I thought I’d take my time. I know that he’s tired now, and that’s why I started with his body as well. I’d break him down slowly, and that’s what I did.”

And when referee Leon Roberts intervened at the 4:40 mark…

“The moment was amazing,” Diakiese said. “It felt really fun.”

Now it’s off to the next one, which Diakiese expects will be in early 2017. It might be a bit of a wait for him and his loyal and growing fan base, but he also insists it will be worth the wait.

“I have no boring fights and I like to entertain,” he said. “I understand how everything works now and I needed that win, but the next time coming out, it’s going to be a completely different Marc.”

April 15 was a historic day for the UFC and mixed martial arts, as the bill to legalize and regulate the sport in the state of New York was finally passed. For the 21 fighters on the current UFC roster with ties to the Empire State, it opened the door for the opportunity to fight at home in front of family and friends, and some will be on hand on November 12 when the Octagon makes its first appearance in Madison Square Garden for the stacked UFC 205 event. And while some of them already occupy this list of the most notable New Yorkers to compete in the Octagon, for the rest, it’s their chance to possibly make their own local history one day.

Phil Baroni / Long Island (Watch Baroni-Menne on UFC FIGHT PASS)

No list of fighters from New York would be complete without the “NY Bad Ass” himself, Phil Baroni. Entertaining and charismatic in and out of the Octagon, Baroni was a staple of the promotion in the early Zuffa era, competing eight times from 2001 to 2005, engaging in entertaining rivalries with Matt Lindland and Evan Tanner while also producing a highlight reel 18-second knockout of Dave Menne. Baroni would return for UFC bouts in 2009 and 2011, but lost both to Amir Sadollah and Brad Tavares.

Rashad Evans / Niagara Falls (Watch Evans-Griffin on UFC FIGHT PASS)

Winner of The Ultimate Fighter’s second season at heavyweight, Rashad Evans dropped down to the light heavyweight division following his win over Brad Imes and quickly evolved into one of the best light heavyweights of his era. A former 205-pound champion who will make his middleweight debut against Tim Kennedy at UFC 205, Evans already holds victories over UFC Hall of Famers Stephan Bonnar, Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin, and when his career ends, you can expect to see “Suga” join them in the hall.

Uriah Hall / NYC (Watch Hall-Leben on UFC FIGHT PASS)

A finalist on season 17 of The Ultimate Fighter, Hall – who had already faced Chris Weidman and Costas Philippou on the local circuit before TUF – made his name on the reality show with a knockout for the ages of Adam Cella. In the Octagon, Hall has shown flashes of brilliance, most notably in a knockout of Gegard Mousasi in September of 2015, but he has been erratic as well.

Matt Hamill / Utica (Watch Hamill-Ortiz on UFC FIGHT PASS)

An inspirational figure who was the first deaf fighter to compete in the Octagon, Matt Hamill is more than just the answer to the trivia question of who is the only man to defeat Jon Jones (albeit via disqualification.) Over the course of his UFC career, Hamill fought the best night in and night out, even beating more than a few of them, including Tito Ortiz, Tim Boetsch, Keith Jardine and Mark Munoz.

Al Iaquinta / Long Island (Watch Iaquinta-Pearson on UFC FIGHT PASS)

The upside is high on lightweight up and comer Al Iaquinta, a finalist on TUF 15 who roared back from his loss to Michael Chiesa in 2012 to win seven of his next eight Octagon bouts. Currently sporting a four-fight winning streak that has seen him finish Rodrigo Damm, Ross Pearson and Joe Lauzon, as well as decision Jorge Masvidal, “Raging Al” should be making plenty of noise at 155 pounds when he returns from an injury-induced layoff.

Jon Jones / Endicott (Watch Jones-Rua on UFC FIGHT PASS)

At the moment, Jon Jones may not just be the greatest fighter to hail from New York, but the greatest of all-time. A once in a generation talent, Jones became the youngest champion in UFC history when he defeated Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in 2011, and he went on to successfully defend that title a 205-pound record eight times against a Murderers Row level of competition. Looking to return to active duty and regain the title he never lost in the Octagon, Jones’ biggest threat to greatness has only been himself, so if he stays on the right track, the sky is the limit.

Neil Magny / Brooklyn (Watch Magny-Kunimoto on UFC FIGHT PASS)

He may call Colorado home now, but Brooklyn-born Neil Magny will always be claimed by those living in the Empire State. One of the hottest fighters in the welterweight division, it’s hard to believe that Magny started his UFC career after The Ultimate Fighter 16 with a 1-2 mark. But from 2014, Magny has won 10 of 12 bouts, a run that has seen him defeat Erick Silva, Kelvin Gastelum and Hector Lombard.

Ricco Rodriguez / Staten Island (Watch Rodriguez-Couture on UFC FIGHT PASS)

A former UFC heavyweight champion who went 5-2 in the Octagon from 2001 to 2003, Ricco Rodriguez spent his formative years in Staten Island, New York, even though he was always closely tied with the Southern California MMA scene for much of his career. A fighter who was one of the best in the game in his prime, Rodriguez also had a ton of crossover appeal, but he was never able to capitalize on that long enough to have the type of longevity enjoyed by a couple of men he beat in the UFC, Randy Couture and Andrei Arlovski.

Matt Serra / Long Island (Watch Serra-St-Pierre I on UFC FIGHT PASS)

If you open the MMA dictionary and look for “New York Fighters,” it’s likely that Matt Serra’s face will be smiling back at you. The quintessential New Yorker, Serra has gained a legion of fans for his sense of humor and affable nature, but you can’t forget how good he was as a fighter. Even before he shocked the world and knocked out Georges St-Pierre for the UFC welterweight title in 2007, Serra was fighting the best in the game, defeating the likes of Yves Edwards, Jeff Curran and Ivan Menjivar, while nearly pulling off wins over Karo Parisyan and Din Thomas and going the distance in a competitive battle against BJ Penn. Serra was more than the king of the one-liners.

Aljamain Sterling / Long Island (Watch Sterling-Mizugaki on UFC FIGHT PASS)

Winner of all but one of his pro bouts, bantamweight contender Aljamain Sterling has championship and star potential, a deadly combination that is likely to keep him in the headlines for years to come. A former college wrestling standout with a vicious submission game, “The Funk Master” has won four of his five UFC bouts thus far, with his two finishes of Takeya Mizugaki and Johnny Eduardo making no secret of his status as a threat at 135 pounds.

Frank Trigg / Rochester (Watch Hughes-Trigg II on UFC FIGHT PASS)

A native of Rochester, Frank Trigg was a world-class wrestler with the kind of personality that made you either want to see him fight or see him lose. That, along with his ability to win on fight night, earned him two bouts with UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes, the second of which saw Trigg come perilously close to taking the title before Hughes roared back and won. That bout earned Trigg and Hughes a spot in the UFC Hall of Fame’s fight wing in 2015.

Chris Weidman / Long Island (Watch Weidman-Silva I on UFC FIGHT PASS)

One of the most vocal advocates to have MMA legal in the state of New York, former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman got his wish in April and quickly called dibs on a spot on the first card to be held at Madison Square Garden. He got his wish, as he’ll face Yoel Romero this November. If he can defeat Romero, the “All-American,” whose career already has milestone wins over Anderson Silva (twice), Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort, will be in line for a crack at regaining his belt.

The last image of Ronda Rousey inside the Octagon is a hazy one. Stunned and confused after suffering her first loss – a knockout at the hands of Holly Holm at UFC 193 in November 2015 – Rousey lost her title and her unblemished record all with one big left kick.

It’s almost as if the MMA world has been in a malaise ever since.

“I got clipped in the first exchange and was knocked out on my feet,” Rousey told Ellen Degeneres in February. “I had no perception. I almost felt like I couldn’t see. I could see but I couldn’t tell how far my hand was from my face or how far she was from me. I was swinging blindly. I knew she was out there but I really don’t remember most of it.”

The UFC bantamweight division without Rousey seemed incomplete.

Now, all the pieces are back together following the announcement that Rousey is returning, hoping to regain her championship when she faces current title holder Amanda Nunes at UFC 207 in Las Vegas on Dec. 30.

RELATED: Rousey to return vs. champion Nunes at UFC 207 | Watch some of the greatest UFC women’s championship finishes | Rousey mural in Venice – time lapse | Nunes talks Rousey and more at UFc 201 Q & A | Nunes backstage interview after beating Miesha Tate

Looking back on Rousey’s reign — a three-year domination and demolition of the women’s 135-pound division – her mark on the sport is even more impressive considering what’s taken place since her loss to Holm. There have been three champions in that span, and not one has been able to retain the strap even once.

Rousey defended six times before she lost her coveted gold belt. There’s no doubt – Rousey is the most dominant woman to ever step foot in the Octagon.

And she’s back.

Waiting for Rousey could be the toughest challenge she’s faced in the UFC. Nunes showcased her destructive striking when she annihilated Miesha Tate at UFC 200, finishing the woman who choked out Holm, who knocked out Rousey.

The big knock against Nunes has been her perceived inability to last later into fights. Against Cat Zingano in 2014, Nunes was close to a finish in the first round before Zingano was able to change the momentum of the fight and use her wrestling to eventually earn a TKO of her own in the third round.

Nunes’ ground game is elite level. She is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt who trains at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida. She plies her train daily with the best in the world and, should Rousey choose to take this fight to the ground with arguably the best judo in the UFC today, she’ll have to deal with a force on the canvas.

„I’ve been training jiu-jitsu since I started. Jiu-jitsu and judo both together,” Nunes said at a July Q&A session. “I know how to block very well judo throws, I know how to use my hips very well. I know if Ronda Rousey is coming back, I’m going to keep the championship.”

Stopping judo throws is one thing. Stopping Rousey judo throws is a whole other matter.

Rousey’s stand-up was exposed against Holm – a former multiple-time professional boxing world champion. Since then, Rousey’s camp has admitted that she probably approached the fight in the wrong way. She was eager and tried to aggressively push forward toward Holm, a superb counter striker, with length and powerful leg kicks.

Against Nunes, she’ll face a fighter who should be the aggressor. The champion has big power and likes to stalk her opponents, bringing the power shots early and often. That could play right into Rousey’s hands.

But once the fight hits the mat, if it goes there, that is when the real chess match will begin.

This matchup brings intrigue and marks the return of one of the greatest UFC superstars in the history of the sport.

“Everyone has their moment of picking themselves off the floor. Maybe I just had to be that example of picking myself up off the floor for everyone. Maybe that’s what I’m meant for,” Rousey said. “I really do believe that I’m still undefeated because being defeated is a choice. Everybody has losses in their life but I always choose to be undefeated.”

Matt Parrino is a digital producer and writer for UFC.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MattParrinoUFC

Save