Drakkar Klose feels disrespected by UFC, wants Beneil Dariush rematch at UFC 299

08/12/2023 18:00

Fresh off a slam knockout win at UFC Austin, Drakkar Klose wants to run it back with Beneil Dariush at UFC 299.

Dariush headlined this past Saturday's event and suffered a brutal knockout loss to Arman Tsarukyan. It was his second straight setback in the octagon, and it's been three years since Dariush knocked out Klose at UFC 248.

It might as well have been yesterday for Klose.

"That haunts me every day," he said Wednesday on The MMA Hour. "That should be my number next to my name that he has. I used to have f****** nightmares."

Even before Klose made his cage walk to face Joe Solecki in Austin, he couldn't get away from the memory. The UFC played a highlight of Dariush knocking him out.

"I'm like, 'Hey, bro, I got to fight, too,'" he said.

That 2020 knockout was a fateful one for both Klose and Dariush. It kicked off a string of bad luck for Klose, who wound up spending more than two years on the sidelines after a pair of fights were cancelled due to COVID-19 and, of all things, a concussion suffered when Jeremy Stephens shoved him at the weigh-ins for UFC Vegas 24. Dariush, meanwhile, went on a four-fight winning streak, putting himself in title contention.

Klose concedes his injury troubles haven't done him any favors. But he also sees a pattern that's hard to ignore. Six years after making his debut, he is still fighting on the prelims, as he did against Solecki.

"They disrespect me in UFC," he said. "Maybe I don't show any value."

For a moment, Klose was on the brink of knocking out Dariush before he took a punch that flattened him. He was not surprised when Tsarukyan got to Dariush's chin.

"Everyone touches Beneil," he said. "I had him on the ropes. I should have just been a little bit more patient. I would have the same highlight – that knockout changed the course of his career."

With Dariush's resume trending in the wrong direction, it's possible the UFC won't see the point in booking the rematch for UFC 299, which takes place March 9. If that's the case, Klose wants a top-ranked opponent so he can make up for lost time. That, and "a little extra money," he said with a smile.

Despite all the challenges he's faced, Klose is not ready to hang up on his dream to crack the top five by this time next year.

"It's part of the game man, and I've always embraced and enjoyed the journey – whatever happens, happens. Sometimes, we don't sit back and smell the roses, but you know, we have to."