When Diego Ferreira steps into the Octagon against Beneil Dariush for the second time in his career on Saturday, it won’t be a rematch; it will be an entirely different battle.
The last time the two met was 2014. The third-degree jiu-jitsu black belt was still fairly new to the scene, and Dariush was also working to make a name for himself. Ferreira took the short-notice bout to compete in front of a home crowd in his native Brazil — something he had aspired to do during his career, but never had the opportunity to.
“I was excited to fight in Brazil,” the tenth-ranked lightweight said.