Benoît Saint Denis is patiently progressing through the UFC hierarchy, but he already has his sights set on the top. During the night from Saturday to Sunday, the 30-year-old Frenchman defeated Dan Hooker, the number 6 lightweight, in the second round. Thanks to this significant success, “God of War” should at least climb from 8th to 6th place in its category. Unless you sign your appearance in the Top 5.
In the cage, he listed the opponents he wants to put on his hunt: “No disrespect to the other fighters ahead of me in the rankings, but I want the BMF or the undisputed belt. For me, there are only Max Holloway (4th), Charles Oliveira (3rd), Justin Gaethje (1st) and Ilia Topuria (champion) in my plans. Arman Tsarukyan (2nd) too. »
“BSD” aims for the title or this famous BMF – for “Baddest Mother Fucker”, created to reward the “toughest” fighters and currently held by Holloway. Untenable, he has come out of four victories in nine months, a frantic pace at the heart of such a trying discipline. However, his success against Hooker took much longer to emerge than his 15-second knockout against Beneil Dariush in November.
The recovery time will be longer, according to his coach. “The desire is to rest after this fight,” Nicolas Ott announced to RMC on Friday. I would like to give him a good month of rest outside the tatami mats to rest his body and mind, so that he can come back quietly so that we can do some in-depth work and prepare for what’s next. »
“A deserved vacation”
If he seemed eager to rub shoulders with the best, the Gardois aligned himself more with his coach at the press conference. “It’s a sport of opportunity,” he began. I am watching the BMF fight carefully. Apart from that, it will surely be a well-deserved vacation for my wife and the team. »
Beyond rest, it will be a question of determining the opponent. The duel for the BMF will pit Holloway and Oliveira at the beginning of March. Particularly motivated by this belt, Saint Denis could thus be tempted to wait to challenge the winner of this “fight”. Unless the UFC gives him the loser, who will always be ahead of him in the rankings.
The American and the Brazilian could be the closest solutions to the Habs in the rankings. A priori obvious options, while Paddy Pimblett – who will be 5th or 6th depending on the Frenchman’s progress – is coming off a heavy defeat and the UFC has no interest in gaining from a clash between two popular fighters in Europe.
Another scenario? A cage shared with Tsarukyan, who constantly trashtalks “BSD”. Snubbed by the UFC for having broken Hooker’s nose during the weigh-in at the end of November, the Armenian also withdrew at the last minute from his title fight against Islam Makhachev in January 2025. As a result, he has no fight on the program and a duel against “BSD” could serve as a stepping stone for the two athletes towards a clash for the title.
Too early for the title?
“My priorities are the undisputed belt and the BMF belt,” Saint Denis repeated to journalists. My next goal is to face the winner of Charles vs. Holloway or the winner of Justin vs. Ilia. But if it happens, I will fight Arman and take his place. »
The Tsarukyan prospect appears closer in the short term. The date of a potential fight to unify the belts between Topuria and Gaethje, the champion and his interim, has not yet been set. Especially since the career of the first has been at a standstill since the accusations of domestic violence against him.
Favorite, “El Matador” would also be working on a summit meeting with Makhachev in the top category, in the event of a prior victory against Gaethje. Enough to considerably push back an opportunity to see it in the same octagon as “BSD”.
He underlines his exemplary nature with regard to the major MMA organization. “I knew how to keep quiet and accept many hazards for the benefit of the UFC several times to ensure the show. I believe that I have earned my place for this type of fight,” said Saint Denis.
The latter, however, risks fighting once or twice before challenging the champion. “The terms of a fight for the title have already been negotiated” in the recent contract he signed, also recalled his manager Guillaume Peltier.
