He is particularly proud of it, even if it is no longer very recent. In his entrance song, his tattoos or his interviews, he does not hesitate to slip in references. Before becoming a professional MMA fighter, Benoît Saint Denis, who faces Dan Hooker on the night of Saturday to Sunday in Australia, was part of the French army’s special forces. A job, or rather a mission, that he carried out for five years before embarking on his second career.
Born in 1995, the Frenchman joined the army at the age of 18, joining the 1st Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment (1st RPIMa). An elite section based in Bayonne, where he still lives today, with which he participated in various missions, mainly in the Sahel. He was notably decorated with the Nation’s Recognition Medal and the Combatant’s Cross, before leaving the army for good in March 2019.
“My father was an officer in the legion, I have always known that,” he confided to us in November 2023. What pushed me to join was the thirst for adventure, the respect for certain values which were transmitted to me, combined with the meeting of this universe, of my comrades, of this fraternity. And I have a deep love for France, which I have enhanced with historical research, because I think you have to be passionate about history to be patriotic. »
“The soldiers are proud of him”
Involved in conflicts in Mali and Niger, where he notably fought against terrorist groups such as Boko Haram, Benoît Saint Denis nevertheless decided to leave the army to launch into professional MMA. A risky but successful choice, appreciated by his brothers in arms. “The soldiers are proud of him,” promises Alexandre. There is a minority who are bad-tempered but the majority above all see that it is possible to reconvert, to become a champion. It gives hope to everyone, especially special forces operators. »
“The difficulty in the French special forces is that we remain military, it is not seen as a career detached from the army,” specifies the Bayonnais to justify his decision. However, it is a really specific job, which requires a lot of time to perform well. This is what made me want to change. Today I find myself more in my MMA career because 100% of my time is involved in becoming a better fighter. »
However, he does not forget his first love. His tattoos of a dagger and the Templar cross often remind him of this, as does his entrance music with the fights since he chose a remix between the song of the commandos and the title “Seine-Saint-Denis Style” by the group Suprême NTM. His nickname, too, is no mystery: “God of War”.
