Benoit Saint Denis plans on reestablishing himself as a UFC lightweight contender with a statement against Renato Moicano.
[autotag]Benoit Saint Denis[/autotag] plans on reestablishing himself as a UFC lightweight contender with a statement against [autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag].
Saint Denis (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) faces Moicano (19-5-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 243 (ESPN+) main event at Accor Arena in Paris. Saint Denis saw his five-fight winning streak snapped by Dustin Poirier at UFC 299 in March. The “God of War” plans on picking up right where he left off against Moicano.
“Everything is open. Everything is to take,” Saint Denis told reporters at Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 243 media day (h/t La Sueur). “I’m here to take everything I can. First off, I need to put on a huge performance against Moicano. He’s a tough fight. I’m expecting a tough fight, and it’s going to be a war. Expect me to do my best to climb the division.”
Although Saint Denis was battling a staph infection heading into his fight with Poirier, his over aggressiveness led to him getting knocked out in Round 2. He has sought help from a new striking coach for this camp.
“Of course, what we want is the same fighter with a bit more responsibility defensively,” Saint Denis said. “This has been one of the keys around my preparation, and I’m ready to give a war and show this off.”
Moicano has leaned on his ground game throughout his career, finishing four of his past six wins by submission. However, Saint Denis is confident he can handle him everywhere.
“I’m a complete mixed martial artist, so it can go anywhere,” Saint Denis said. “We will bring it anywhere we can have our way.”
Michael Bisping believes Renato Moicano could be in for a long night against Benoit Saint Denis.
[autotag]Michael Bisping[/autotag] warns [autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] of [autotag]Benoit Saint Denis[/autotag]’ aggressive style.
Moicano (19-5-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC) takes on Saint Denis (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 243 (ESPN+) main event at Accor Arena in Paris.
Prior to getting knocked out by Dustin Poirier at UFC 299 in March, Saint Denis was on a tear in the lightweight division, finishing five straight opponents. With the French crowd behind him, Bisping expects Saint Denis to come out with a vengeance against Moicano.
“Every time they’ve been to Paris, the crowd has been phenomenal,” Bisping told TNT Sports. “The fights have been great, but I’m telling you: The atmosphere has been electric. This will be no different because in the main event, it’s the French Special Forces, the ridiculously violent and aggressive Benoit Saint Denis. The man that almost, almost decapitated and finished Dustin Poirier on a number of occasions, but then he got tired and then he got finished. But guess what? A star was born because if you almost do that to Dustin Poirier, there’s still a lot of positives to go at.
“In steps the opponent, Renato ‘Money’ Moicano, a man that is also slowly doing his own thing, becoming a star in the lightweight division, as well, which isn’t an easy thing to do because it is so stacked. Benoit Saint Denis is going to be extra violent because he’s in Paris, he’s going to have that crazy crowd going absolutely mental. Renato Moicano, even though he’s really good, and he’s really skilled, and he’s got great jiu-jitsu, and he’s very confident, and he’s good with the fists, has got no idea what he is stepping into. He’s flying into enemy territory, and I’m telling you I cannot wait for this.”
According to DraftKings, Saint Denis is a -270 favorite over Moicano, who’s a +220 underdog. Moicano has won five of his past six, most recently a come-from-behind TKO of Jalin Turner at UFC 300 in April.
Brendan Allen has some ideas about the UFC middleweight title picture, which includes Caio Borralho fighting the Whittaker vs. Chimaev winner.
[autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] likes his position in the middleweight title picture going into Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 243 co-main event vs. Nassourdine Imavov.
Allen (24-5 MMA, 12-2 UFC) will look to extend his seven-fight winning streak when he takes on Imavov (14-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC) in a three-round bout at Accor Arena in Paris (ESPN+). It’s a big fight for the division, especially with champion Dricus Du Plessis coming off a recent title defense over Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in August.
It’s expected that Du Plessis will rematch Sean Strickland in his next defense, then there’s a potential title eliminator around the corner between former champ Robert Whittaker and the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 307 on Oct. 26 in Abu Dhabi.
Allen, No. 10 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie middleweight rankings, also sees No. 6 Caio Borralho in a strong position to fight for gold, but he thinks an impressive win over Imavov would elevate his resume to the point where he should be pushed to the front of the queue.
“Ideally speaking, if I go out there and beat Imavov, especially if I finish Imavov within three rounds in his hometown, in front of his people, I think I’ve checked every single box except for one: to fight for the title,” Allen told MMA Junkie on Tuesday. “There’s nothing I can really do overnight to check the one other box, which is (social media) followers. I don’t know. That’s not my jam. Everything on a fighting level, I think I’ve done every single thing.
“No matter who wins between Whittaker and Chimaev, I feel like that’s a fight for Caio. I think Caio said he wants one more if he can’t get the belt. I think that’s a great fight because he beats either one of them. My ultimate goal would be to fight whoever is for the belt next, which I think is Sean and Dricus. Fight the winner of that then I would be looking to defend against Caio because he would be next in line at the same time. That’s where it is. New blood. I’m the new blood. I’m the youngest guy at the top. Me and Dricus have the longest win streaks in the division, so one of our streaks has got to end if he’s still the champion. There’s a lot of good arguments to be made. The only negative is the followers.”
Allen, 28, knows he doesn’t have the cache right now to make massive demands or hold out for certain fights. He is accepting that the hard road is for him, but beating No. 7-ranked Imavov would do wonders to build his case.
If UFC doesn’t grant him his wish, though, he said he’s going to keep on pushing until the UFC brass are forced to give him what he wants and deserves.
“Everyone knows when I come to fight, I come to fight win or lose,” Allen said. “I’m going to put on a fight. You’re going to know you’re in a fight unless you catch me, and that’s the only way I think guys can beat me is to catch me. That can happen to anyone on any given night and that’s the reason I always say to everyone I don’t control the outcome. If I do my job on Saturday I think I have a great argument. But I’m not one to sit out for a year to see that. I’m not going to go that. I’m not leaving money on the table like that.”
Allen admits he initially had some mixed feelings about the fight with Imavov. He initially wanted a five-round headliner and had agreed to such, but claims his opponent declined a 25-minute fight. Allen agreed to that and proceeded with his preparation, and now he’s ready to go into the octagon and perform in a situation where the chips are against him.
“Sometimes people just need everything in their favor,” Allen said of Imavov. “At the end of the day he got his way and it’s in his favor. It’s in his hometown in front of his people with probably his judges and everything else. It is what it is. I’ll be there on Saturday night if God says the same.”
Renato Moicano sees some marquee lightweight fights in the offing if he gets past Benoit Saint Denis in the UFC Fight Night 243 main event.
[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] sees some marquee lightweight fights in the offing if he gets through Benoit Saint Denis in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 243 main event.
Moicano (19-6-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC) will step onto the headlining stage for the second time in his UFC tenure Saturday when he takes on France’s own Benoit Saint Denis (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) at Accor Arena in Paris (ESPN+).
The Brazilian has won five of his past six fights entering the showdown with Saint Denis, and he expects the upward trajectory to only continue if his hand is raised.
“If I beat Benoit Saint Denis, I am in a good position,” Moicano told MMA Junkie on Tuesday. “I get these main events. I get the popularity of the audience. And if he beats me, it’s going to be good for him, too, because I am a veteran. UFC always benefits from whatever, so I don’t really care. I’m focused on myself, my training camp and on the fight week and to deliver the best performance.”
If Moicano is able to enter enemy territory this weekend and get the job done, he said two names are frequently being thrown his way – and that’s Paddy Pimblett and Dan Hooker.
Pimblett, who is coming off a breakthrough submission win over Bobby Green at UFC 304 in July, repeatedly has stated he wants Moicano next, regardless of whether he wins or loses against Saint Denis.
Hooker, meanwhile, got a monumental triumph of his own at UFC 305 in August when he edged Mateusz Gamrot by split decision. “The Hangman” has expressed his desire to fight upward in the 155-pound rankings, but Moicano has an eye on Hooker, too..
“(Pimblett is a) harder (fight) than Dan Hooker, brother,” Moicano said. “I think so. His last fight, he did great against Bobby Green. What can I say? He did good. Bobby Green is a tough fighter. Bobby Green is very hard to finish. Even though Bobby Green is more of a boxer, he has a very good defensive grappling. The transition was good. The transition for the guillotine to the triangle then finishing him, it was a great performance.
“(Hooker is) above me in the rankings, and I say to you I like easy fights. Who knows.”
Before any other fights can become real, Moicano said it’s important his focus stays on the task at hand with Saint Denis. The pair had their first fight week staredown on Tuesday in front of the host venue, and it was a respectful scene. Moicano said that was intentional and said his energy will change as the time to step in the octagon approaches.
“I didn’t take too much away,” Moicano said. “It’s still Tuesday. I don’t know why we did a faceoff today. I think on Friday it’s going to be more raw. Today was too respectful, and there is no point in starting to be pumped on Tuesday. I will wait a little bit more.”
Watch Benoit Saint-Denis batter and bloody Thiago Moises in a dominant TKO win in 2023.
UFC lightweight contender [autotag]Benoit Saint-Denis[/autotag] is undefeated in France, and he plans to keep it that way.
In his most recent outing in France a year ago, Saint-Denis put it on veteran Thiago Moises to score a TKO win. It was a dominant showing in which Saint-Denis used his strength, wresting and ground-and-pound to badly batter and bloody Moises.
You can watch Saint-Denis Fight of the Night win over Moises in the video above.
Saint-Denis (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) returns to France on Saturday to headline UFC Fight Night 243 (ESPN+) at Accor Arena in Paris against Renato Moicano (19-5-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC).
Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Thursday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
Those reader consensus picks will be part of the main card staff predictions we release ahead of UFC Fight Night 243 (ESPN/ESPN+), which takes place Saturday at Accor Arena.
Here’s what you need to know to watch UFC Fight Night 243 on ESPN+.
After a week off, the UFC is back for its latest visit to the “City of Lights” with ranked lightweights at the top of the lineup.
Here’s how to watch UFC Fight Night 243 with 155-pounders in the headlining spot, plus middleweights in the co-feature in Paris.
Broadcast and streaming info
John Gooden, Dominick Cruz, Michael Bisping
UFC Fight Night 243 has a main card that starts at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN+. The preliminary card streams on ESPN+ at noon ET.
Veteran broadcaster [autotag]Karyn Bryant[/autotag] serves as desk anchor and host at UFC Fight Night 243.
Former light heavyweight title challenger [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] and retired lightweight veteran [autotag]Paul Felder[/autotag] join her as analysts at the desk for pre-fight coverage.
UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Michael Bisping[/autotag] joins Bryant and Smith at the desk for post-fight coverage.
Longtime UFC correspondent [autotag]Heidi Androl[/autotag] will conduct pre and post-fight interviews backstage with some of the athletes on the UFC Fight Night 243 card, as well as report additional real-time updates for the event.
[autotag]John Gooden[/autotag] will serve as the leading man on the mic from cageside at UFC Fight Night 243.
He’ll command play-by-play and be joined in the booth by retired former middleweight champion and UFC Hall of Famer Bisping, as well as Felder.
(Mike Bohn, MMA Junkie)
Main event: Renato Moicano
Apr 13, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Renato Moicano (blue gloves) fights Jalin Turner (red gloves) during UFC 300 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 19-5-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC Opponent: Benoit Saint Denis (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) Division: Lightweight Key wins: Jalin Turner, Drew Dober, Brad Riddell, Alexander Hernandez, Cub Swanson, Calvin Kattar Misc.: Moicano, a Brazilian who trains at American Top Team in Florida, has not fought outside the U.S. since just before the pandemic – a 44-second submission of Damir Hadzovic in Brazil.
Main event: Benoit Saint Denis
Nov 11, 2023; New York, NY, USA; Matt Frevola (red gloves) fights Benoit Saint Denis (blue gloves) during UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC Opponent: Renato Moicano (19-5-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC) Division: Lightweight Key wins: Matt Frevola, Thiago Moises, Ismael Bonfim, Gabriel Miranda Misc.: This is Saint Denis’ favorite time of year: UFC Paris week. The promotion’s first two visits to his capital city resulted in $50,000 stoppage bonuses for him.
Co-main event: Brendan Allen
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 06: (L-R) Brendan Allen punches Chris Curtis in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 06, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Record: 24-5 MMA, 12-2 UFC Opponent: Nassourdine Imavov (14-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC) Division: Middleweight Key wins: Chris Curtis, Paul Craig, Bruno Silva, Misc.: Allen has been an RNC machine during his current streak. Five of his seven straight wins have been by rear-naked chokes, including three for $50,000 bonuses.
Co-main event: Nassourdine Imavov
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 03: (L-R) Nassourdine Imavov of Russia punches Roman Dolidze of Georgia in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on February 03, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Record: 14-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC Opponent: Brendan Allen (24-5 MMA, 12-2 UFC) Division: Middleweight Key wins: Jared Cannonier, Roman Dolidze, Joaquin Buckley, Edmen Shahbazyan Misc.: It’s a home game for Russia’s Imavov, who lives and trains in France. Remarkably, Imavov has been favored against eight straight opponents (including a bout with Kelvin Gastelum that was canceled twice) – and three have been future champions or former or future title challengers.
Record: 14-3 Opponent: Ion Cutelaba (17-10-1 MMA, 6-9-1 UFC) Division: Light heavyweight Misc.: 32-year-old Croatian has 11 of his 14 wins by stoppage.
UFC Fight Night 243 main card betting odds
Sep 2, 2023; Paris, France; William Gomis (red gloves) fights Yanis Ghemmouri (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Accor Arena. Mandatory Credit: Per Haljestam-USA TODAY Sports
MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 3 p.m. ET)
Renato Moicano (+220) vs. Benoit Saint Denis (-270)
Brendan Allen (+175) vs. Nassourdine Imavov (-210)
Joanderson Brito (-260) vs. William Gomis (+210)
Bryan Battle (-150) vs. Kevin Jousset (+125)
Morgan Charriere (-550) vs. Gabriel Miranda (+400)
Matt Frevola (-125) vs. Fares Ziam (+105)
UFC Fight Night 243 prelim betting odds
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY – JUNE 01: Ailin Perez of Argentina celebrates defeating Joselyne Edwards of Panama in their bantamweight bout during UFC 302 at Prudential Center on June 01, 2024 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, noon ET)
Ion Cutelaba (-125) vs. Ivan Erslan (+105)
Da Woon Jung (+350) vs. Oumar Sy (-450)
Ludovit Klein (-700) vs. Roosevelt Roberts (+500)
Taylor Lapilus (-355) vs. Vince Morales (+280)
Ailin Perez (-260) vs. Darya Zheleznyakova (+210)
Victor Altamirano (+115) vs. Daniel Barez (-145)
Jacqueline Cavalcanti (-195) vs. Nora Cornolle (+155)
Renato Moicano earned his second main event spot vs. Benoit Saint Denis at UFC Fight Night 243 with an epic comeback at UFC 300.
Jalin Turner seemingly had [autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] dead-to-rights at UFC 300, but then a tactical error cost him the win.
Moicano (19-5-1 MMA, 11-5 UFC) is set to face Benoit Saint Denis (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in next Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 243 main event at Accor Arena in Paris (ESPN+) in what will be the first headliner of his promotional tenure. That spot was earned through a gruelling comeback win over Turner at the monumental UFC 300 event in April.
Turner came out of the fight strong, hurting Moicano on the feet and using his striking ability to score a knockdown. Instead of pouncing on his downed opponent, though, Turner attempted to get a walk-off highlight. The fight wasn’t stopped, however, and Moicano regained his wits and made it to the next round, where he got the fight to the mat and finished the job with a ground-and-pound TKO.
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The result put Moicano on a three-fight winning streak and pushed his record to 6-1 since moving up to the lightweight division from featherweight. His reward was a main event in hostile territory, because he’ll next take on France’s Saint Denis in a fight with big stakes for the winner.
Before UFC Fight Night 243, however, the UFC has released the full fight video of Moicano vs. Turner, which can be viewed above.
It’s hard to make it to the UFC. It’s even harder to make it twice.
It’ll be 679 days between UFC fights for [autotag]Vince Morales[/autotag], but he’s made it back.
Two-plus years, five fights and four finishes later, Morales (16-7 MMA, 3-5 UFC) has signed for a short-notice bout on Sept. 28 vs. Taylor Lapilus (20-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 243 in Paris.
“It’s a long time coming,” Morales told MMA Junkie on Friday. “I’m trying to take things in stride. I’m not really trying to push my narrative as I’m back, as much as I’m here now. I think it’s a different mindset and it’s a different skillset I’m going to be able to show that’s going to be turning heads a little bit differently than in the past.
“That’s because Vince Morales is a little more free now as a fighter. I’m just in there to fight fights, not to just win fights or not lose fights.”
Vince Morales hits a Peruvian Necktie to snatch the UFL bantamweight strap from Hunter Azure in the 3rd round. What a sub. BEAUTIFUL #UFL5pic.twitter.com/VVWrhVAisJ
It’s a difficult feat to make the UFC. It’s even harder to make it twice, but Morales has done that. A modified Peruvian necktie submission over fellow UFC alum Hunter Azure pushed him over the finish line, attracting a call from matchmaker Sean Shelby.
Morales, 33, hopes to rebrand the specific sub-genre of Peruvian neckties “the Vinchuvian necktie,” something he thinks could be accomplished if he hits it in the UFC.
“A bunch of people sent me like four different variations that are all real similar,” Morales said. “There was the caveman necktie, the Gamburyan necktie, the Texas necktie, the Armenian necktie. It was a whole bunch of different things. Next thing, I was like, ‘I’m going to go look up and see who’s got them in competition.’ I found zero. I was like, ‘Cool, I get it. I call dibs.’ So I might have to hit it again in the UFC on a bigger stage.”
[lawrence-related id=2772980,2772748]
Flashy finishes aside, Morales knows he’s taking a step up – to a level he thinks is where he belongs. He’ll be the first to admit his eight-fight UFC tenure from 2018 to 2022 didn’t highlight his best abilities. He went 3-5 during that time.
But outside the promotion, he’s tweaked his mindset, which he pointed to as the main thing holding him back.
“(Being released from the UFC) didn’t really change the goals,” Morales said. “It just changed where I was doing them. I’m going out there to fight and beat people up. For now, I might have to be doing it elsewhere. But on the plus side, I can actually work some things in the gym in the fight. In the fights in the UFC, it’s hard to really develop, especially if you get in under 10 fights.
“We’re still kind of figuring out who we are and how we fight. I took that as opportunity to catch my breath and go work some things. I mixed in some wrestling. I tried to work some other areas in my game that I think needed to come out in the fight and not just the gym. The proof is in the pudding.”
Location: Yas Island, Abu Dhabi
Venue: Etihad Arena
Broadcast: ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN+
Current UFC 308 lineup:
Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway – for featherweight title
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Robert Whittaker
Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakic
Shara Magomedov vs. Armen Petrosyan
Dan Ige vs. Lerone Murphy
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Geoff Neal
Myktybek Orolbai vs. Mateusz Rebecki
Said Nurmagomedov vs. Daniel Santos
Brunno Ferreira vs. Abus Magomedov
Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Justin Tafa
Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Nursulton Ruziboev
Farid Basharat vs. Victor Hugo
Ismail Naurdiev vs. Bruno Silva
Ibo Aslan vs. Raffael Cerqueira
Upcoming Dana White’s Contender Series events
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 03: A general view of the Octagon prior to Dana White’s Contender Series season eight, week four at UFC APEX on September 3, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
If you want to see potential stars of the future, Dana White’s Contender Series continues into October, showcasing regional hopefuls fighting to earn a UFC contract.
Each event takes place on Tuesdays at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.
