Was Benoit Saint-Denis in the Army? ‘The God of War’ and His Journey From Military to the UFC Explained

Despite a rough debut, French MMA fighter Benoit Saint-Denis has found his rhythm in the UFC after dropping a weight category. He has now won his last five bouts in style, forcing stoppages. This “God of War” is now a rising title contender, who won his recent fight against Matt Frevola at UFC 295 via first-round knockout. He will now face a major test against top-ranked Dustin Poirier in his quest to become a UFC BMF champion at UFC 299 on March 9th. So, let us explore the background of this ex-French serviceman and his journey from Special Forces to the world of UFC.

Benoit Saint-Denis details his experience in the French Army Special Forces

Born to a French Army Officer, Benoit Saint Dennis followed the footsteps of his father and joined the French Army at an early age after completing his schooling. This happened after he won a black belt in judo and dabbled in rugby. His brilliance in physical abilities not only helped him get into his field of interest but also served in dangerous missions.

During his days in the military, he fought several overseas terrorist groups including the notorious Boko Haram from Nigeria, and a mission to reclaim an airport in Timbuktu, Mali. Recalling his time in the military, Saint-Denis said in an interview on The MMA Hour, “It was an adventure and I loved it”

He further said, “I wanted to be part of these kind of small groups doing very important geopolitical missions, and being great at using any kind of weapons” It was this experience with the military that probably prompted him to adorn the nickname of ‘The God of War’ in what later became his new field of interest.

Read more: Islam Makhachev Receives Title Shot Calls as Dustin Poirier’s UFC 299 Rival Benoit Saint-Denis Lays Out LW Plans

In 2017, he developed an interest in MMA when he started practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jutsu. Since he had a penchant for combat sports from his early days, he was drawn towards it. After watching a fight between Rory MacDonald and Robbie Lawler at UFC 189, he decided to pursue a career in MMA and quit his journey in the military in 2019.

UFC lightweight’s journey in the promotion so far

Saint-Denis tried his hands in kickboxing in 2018 and then tried his hands at actual MMA training. 15 days later, he entered his first MMA amateur tournament and won. Two years later, he achieved his dream of getting into UFC but the start was rocky as he suffered a loss at the hands of Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos via a unanimous decision. But he soon dropped to his actual weight category and his career peaked. Since then, he has been 5-0 in his bouts in the lightweight category, all via stoppages. And now, he is set to face veteran Dustin Poirier to become the BMF Champion.

Do you think Benoit Saint Denis will become the BMF Champion?

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