The Octagon-side doctor in Paris had seen enough. He moved to stop the main event between Renato Moicano and the home-standing Benoit Saint Denis as the latter’s right eye had been shut from some vicious ground-and-pound strikes in the first round.
The doctor’s stoppage came before the third round, but oddly enough, Saint Denis had somehow recovered enough to win the second frame. Still, the damage he incurred in the first round gave him a steep uphill climb. Saint Denis is known as the God of War, and after tangling with Moicano, the Frenchman looked like he’d been in one.
When the fight was over, several MMA community members took to X to express their opinions.
ESPN MMA posted this before and after image of Saint Denis to show the level of damage Moicano did in just one round.
Alex Behunin referenced Saint Denis’s loss against Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in October 2021. Referee Vyacheslav Kiselev allowed Saint Denis to take far more punishment than he should have in that fight as dos Santos pummeled him on the feet most of the first round.
Daniel Cormier, Paul Felder, and Jon Anik were screaming for Kiselev to stop the fight, and much like what we saw against Moicano, Saint-Denis was able to mount a small comeback, but not enough to win. Behunin called both losses “horrendous beatings.”
Saint Denis’ calling card is his toughness. His background in France’s special forces unit is a part of the mystique. He is beginning to rack up the number of stoppage defeats and taking a good amount of damage in the process.
It’s time someone on his team starts to think about his long-term future in the sport and beyond.
Here is a look at all of the results from UFC Paris.
UFC Fight Night Paris Main Card
- Renato Moicano def. Benoît Saint Denis via TKO at 5:00 of Round 3
- Nassourdine Imavov def. Brendan Allen via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
- William Gomis defeats Joanderson Brito via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Bryan Battle defeats Kevin Jousset via TKO at 3:47 of Round 2
- Morgan Charriere defeats Gabriel Miranda via KO at 0:27 of Round 2
- Fares Ziam defeats Matt Frevola via KO at 2:59 of Round 3
- Ion Cutelaba defeats Ivan Erslan via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Oumar Sy defeats Jung Da-woon via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
- Ľudovit Klein defeats Roosevelt Roberts via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Taylor Lapilus def. Vince Morales via unanimous decision (30-27×3)
- Ailín Pérez def. Daria Zheleznyakova via submission at 3:52 of Round 1 (Arm-Triangle Choke)
- Daniel Barez defeats Victor Altamirano via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
- Jacqueline Cavalcanti defeats Nora Cornolle via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
- Chris Duncan defeats Bolaji Oki via submission at 3:34 of Round 1 (Guillotine)
