Elmont, NY — Former ARES FC champion Moustapha Diakhate made a big debut at PFL New York on Friday, picking up a dominant finish over Darryl Walker.
Walking to the cage in clothes in the style of the kings of Senegal, light heavyweight Diakhate (6-0-1) turned heads in more ways than one, and was greeted following the fight by MVP’s Jake Paul. That’s thanks to the newly announced merger between the PFL and Most Valuable Promotions, with the two moving forward under the MVP banner next year.
“I’m very happy for the news,” Diakhate told media outlets including Cageside Press following the bout at the UBS Arena. “Jake Paul is a good guy, I like Jake Paul. Jake Paul is my guy.”
In the cage, recalled Diakhate, “I said to Jake Paul, ‘I’m the new king of PFL.'”
Paul responded by saying “I believe you,” according to the massive Senegalese wrestler.
Comparisons are already being made between Diakhate, who fights out of Belgium, and Francis Ngannou, who made his way to France, and later the U.S., en route to MMA stardom.
“Ngannou is a legend of Africa, of the world. I like Francis Ngannou. It’s my dream to fight on the same card with Francis Ngannou,” Diakhate said of his fellow African star.
As for his own future, “I’m a beginner of this sport, maybe, but you see the performance I did,” noted Diakhate, who added that he’d like to “maybe do a movie in the future.”
He certainly has the look down.
Watch the full PFL New York post-fight press conference with Moustapha Diakhate above.
