As in 1998: France 3, Brazil 0. This time, the scorers are not Zinedine Zidane and Emmanuel Petit, but Benoît Saint Denis, Nassourdine Imavov and Oumar Sy. And the theater is not the Stade de France but the Accor Arena (12th arrondissement). The result remains the same, however: an ultra-domination for a whole evening which sent the French public to paradise.
It remains to be seen whether the UFC Paris 4 will remain in the Annals as the 1998 World Cup final. No doubt not, the MMA not yet reached the notoriety of football, but it will inevitably mark a turning point in the history of the discipline in France. Thanks in particular to the flawlessness of the Blues, but also to an incandescent and noisier audience than ever.
“I don’t know if it was because I was the first Frenchman to fight but last year, I had not felt so many good energies. There, it was impossible to lose, assured Oumar Sy after his victory by TKO in the 1st round against Brendson Ribeiro to open the France-Brazil match. It’s been four years that we say that the French public may be the best audience in the world but it must be said: it’s the best audience. »»
Imavov must be “the next” candidate for the title
In the career of French fighters too, this evening should have an impact. The captain of this team, Nassourdine Imavov, propelled into main combat this Saturday, is the best example. In search of a chance for the title in average weights, the “sniper” approached it by beating Caio Borralho after a perfectly mastered fight. That he will have to repeat if he faces Khamzat Chimaev in the coming months.
“If you look at what I have accomplished, I don’t worry. It’s me next one, there is no doubt, he repeated once again after his success. People already said that I was not going to beat Adesanya, that he was too strong for me and I put him in his field. There, I just overcominate a guy who had not lost in ten years and who was considered the future. I have shown that I should be next and I don’t care what others say. On the contrary, it motivates me. »»
A bonus “for the baptism of Clovis”
In the locker room before splitting the crowd of Accor Arena, Nassourdine Imavov did not miss a crumb of the performance of his compatriot and teammate Benoît Saint Denis. A year after a heavy and terrifying defeat in Paris against … A Brazilian, the former special forces soldier set the record straight by leaving no chance to poor Mauricio Ruffy, shaken for 8 minutes on the ground before cracking.
“I was very happy when I saw Benoît win. As I said before the fight, it was us against them and we did a very good job, enjoyed Imavov. BSD, he finished on the ground and I had it in striking (standing fight). We show that we are a full team, we can do everything. Nicolas Ott’s men have indeed struggled with the Brazilian Fighting Nerds, the team for the moment, which is probably no longer.
More than a victory, it was a resurrection for “God of War”, which had gone from light to the shade in two cruel defeats in 2024. “I needed to set foot on the ground,” he said. All the champions and those who last in this profession, it is the people who are humble, who work hard and who are well surrounded. I think that today I have gathered all these things. »»
He also inflated his bank account with a bonus of $ 50,000 for one of the “performance of the evening”. And Benoît Saint Denis knows perfectly what he intends to do with it. “It will allow me to pay the baptism of Clovis (his second child born a month ago) and to have a large fiesta. And this time, I will not need to put a pair of glasses in the church. »»
