Marc Diakiese makes promotional debut vs. Tim Wilde at Bellator London

Marc Diakiese has his first assignment after years in the UFC, and it’ll be in his back yard.

The London-based fighter was expected to fight once this year either for Bellator or the PFL, which purchased Bellator in 2023, and then enter the 2025 PFL lightweight season on a quest for a $1 million title. Friday, Bellator announced he’s got a booking for the fall.

Diakiese (17-7 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) will take on Tim Wilde (17-5-1, 5-2-1 BMMA) at the Bellator Champions Series: London event set for Sept. 14 at OVO Arena Wembley.

Diakiese went 8-7 as a UFC lightweight over a stretch of about seven years. He won his first three fights in the promotion and moved to a 12-0 record, but then hit a slump of three straight losses and five setbacks in seven fights.

He left the UFC with a win this past November – a split call over Kaue Fernandes in Sao Paulo. Diakiese fought in England five times in the UFC and went 4-1 in front of his home fans.

Wilde had a six-fight unbeaten streak snapped with a first-round knockout loss to Manoel Sousa in March. Prior to that, he was on a 5-0-1 run in Bellator after a 2019 setback to former champion Brent Primus in a main event.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie