Benoit Saint Denis previews ADXC 4 headliner: Marc Diakiese ‘tough opposition, but I’m more than ready’

Benoit Saint Denis is excited to compete under the ADXC ruleset.

[autotag]Benoit Saint Denis[/autotag] is excited to compete under the ADXC ruleset.

Saint Denis faces Marc Diakiese in a no-gi welterweight grappling match, which headlines ADXC 4 May 18 at Dojo De Paris in France. Saint Denis was initially linked to a matchup vs. No. 1 UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan, but it never materialized.

Diakiese has heavily resorted to his grappling in his recent octagon bouts, and Saint Denis recognizes that.

“I believe he fell in love with the process with another discipline of mixed martial arts, which is the grappling and the wrestling part,” Saint Denis told MMA Junkie on Diakiese. “He’s a good wrestler, he’s an athlete, he’s in the UFC a long time. It will be tough opposition, but I’m more than ready. Let’s see who’s going to win and who’s going to put pressure 18th of May.”

In his most recent octagon outing, Saint Denis was knocked out by Dustin Poirier at UFC 299 in March. He sees ADXC 4 as a good opportunity to continue working on his craft until he gets another fight booked.

“The proposition ADXC is giving us is very exciting,” Saint Denis said. “You will have a lot of cage control, you will have a lot more aggressive grappling style approach with judging not only being on points and on tactics, but on engagement of the fighters. It’s an exciting way to put things on the table and to have a great show, and to have time to prepare for one specific part of the mixed martial arts career.”

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Benoit Saint Denis vs. Marc Diakiese grappling match headlines ADXC 4 on May 18

UFC standout Benoit Saint Denis will get to compete at home in a grappling match.

[autotag]Benoit Saint Denis[/autotag] will get to compete at home in a grappling match.

Saint Denis faces fellow UFC fighter [autotag]Marc Diakiese[/autotag] in a no-gi welterweight grappling match, which headlines ADXC 4 May 18 at Dojo De Paris in France, promotion officials announced Monday. Saint Denis was expected to face Arman Tsarukyan, who withdrew due to undisclosed reasons.

After finishing five straight lightweights, Saint Denis (13-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) saw his winning streak snapped at the hands of Dustin Poirier in a knockout loss at UFC 299 in March. Saint Denis later revealed that he entered the fight with staph infection, which he says hampered his performance.

Diakiese (17-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) was last seen in action this past November when he edged out Kaue Fernandes at UFC Fight Night 231 in Brazil. He landed three takedowns in the win, which snapped his two-fight losing skid.

Also competing at ADXC 4 is UFC lightweight Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady, who faces Amin Ayoub in a no-gi welterweight grappling match on the main card.

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