UFC fan favorite teases next fight, seeks redemption in Paris

"God of War" came up short when he headlined UFC Paris last year.

(Zuffa LLC)

One of the UFC’s top-ranked lightweight contenders has teased plans for a return at the promotion’s upcoming event in Paris.

UFC Paris has become a staple of the promotion’s international schedule over the last few years, and the Octagon will officially return to France on September 6 this year with a card headlined by top middleweight fighters Nassourdine Imavov and Caio Borralho.

Light heavyweight Oumar Sy is the only French fighter other than Imavov that’s been booked to fight at UFC Paris so far, but it looks like last year’s headliner is also planning to compete at the event after he returned to the win column in March.

Nassourdine Imavov gets checked out by the officials before the start of his middleweight main bout against Jared Cannonier. | Timothy D. Easley/Special to the Courier-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Benoit Saint-Denis Teases Return At UFC Paris

Currently sitting at #14 in the UFC lightweight rankings, fan favorite Benoit Saint-Denis told French sports outlet L’Equipe that he’ll be fighting at this year’s edition of UFC Paris.

Benoit Saint-Denis shared L'Equipe's report on his Instagram story. | (Instagram)

After dropping his promotional debut up a weight class against Elizeu Zaleski at UFC 267, Saint-Denis put together a five-fight streak of finishes to earn a huge matchup with former interim lightweight titleholder Dustin Poirier at UFC 299.

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“God of War” earned his fourth post-fight bonus in that outing but was knocked out in the second round, and later that year Saint-Denis returned to headline UFC Paris in what turned out to be another losing effort opposite Renato Moicano.

No Confirmed Opponent For Saint Denis

Saint-Denis was originally booked to meet surging lightweight contender Joel Alvarez at UFC 315 before Alvarez was replaced by UFC returnee Kyle Prepolec, who put in a spirited effort on short notice before he was submitted by the Frenchman in the second round.

It’s unclear at this moment who “God of War” might meet at UFC Paris this year, but the card could certainly benefit from Saint-Denis’ inclusion as well as a potential France vs. Spain matchup if the UFC are able to rebook the fight with Alvarez.

Benoit Saint-Denis (red gloves) defeats Kyle Prepolec (blue gloves) during UFC 315 at Bell Centre. | Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

UFC Paris currently has seven confirmed fights and boasts plenty of European talent even if it’s fairly light on French fighters so far, and one of the card’s major storylines will be the debut of former PFL Heavyweight Champion Ante Delija opposite longtime UFC heavyweight mainstay Marcin Tybura in a Croatia vs. Poland matchup.

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• Main Event: Nassourdine Imavov vs. Caio Borralho

• Marcin Tybura vs. Ante Delija

• Bolaji Oki vs. Mason Jones

• Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Andreas Gustafsson

• Oumar Sy vs. Brendson Ribeiro

• Shauna Bannon vs. Sam Hughes

• Yunesy Duben vs. Kennedy Freeman

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