UFC Paris took place on Saturday evening in France, and while the preliminary card barely reached a cool simmer, the main card outdid all expectations by opening with three consecutive highlight-reel knockouts to kick things off. Renato Moicano bought it home (home to Brazil at the dismay of French fans) with a brutal ground and pound display in the first round that would earn him a win by TKO when the doctor stopped the fight after the third round, as hometown favorite Benoit St. Denis could not see out of his right eye. The Sporting News' MMA analyst Val Dewar sat down to project which fights will come next for the unfortunate losers from Saturday's show.
Main Event: Benoit St. Denis
Benoit St. Denis came into the bout with the hopes of French patriots riding on him. A former French Special Forces soldier, he has been a focus for much nationalism among MMA fans in the country. His loss to Dustin Poirier upset them, but ‘The Diamond’ is a legend. His faithful fans were certain that he would demolish Renato Moicano, and the betting line agreed, with BSD being a -250 favorite.
So the crowd was shocked when ‘Money’ Moicano took him down early, sliced up his face, and eventually won via doctor’s stoppage. Benoit was undefeated at lightweight when the year began, but now finds himself on a two-fight losing streak. Such is the way of things in the brutal sport of MMA. St Denis has star power, so the UFC may choose to let him fight another ranked fighter, such as Jalin Turner or Rafael dos Anjos. But it may be better to give him a step down in competition, allowing BSD to right the ship.
Just outside of the lightweight top-15 sit many talented fighters trying to break into the tier above. Hardly anyone deserves a chance to do so more than Ludovit Klein. Klein also competed at UFC Paris, beating journeyman Roosevelt Roberts, and is now on a four-fight winning streak – and a seven-fight unbeaten streak overall, one of those being a draw with Jai Herbert. That sort of streak is rare outside the rankings, and both fighters’ timelines for training should line up since they fought on the same night. Klein is a talented fighter in a lot of areas, but he has probably never faced a physical force as aggressive and explosive as St. Denis. It will be a big test for both men
Next Fight: St. Denis vs Ludovit Klein
Co-Main Event: Brendan Allen
Although Brendan Allen had success in the first round against Nassourdine Imavov, he could not land his takedowns in the final two rounds, got tired, and lost the decision. With his eight-fight winning streak coming to a close and him currently ranked eighth at middleweight, fighters ranked similarly to him like Jared Cannonier, Paulo Costa, and Jack Hermansson make a lot of sense. Cannonier is almost an elder statesman of the division at this point, and also lost to Imavov recently, so that fight makes a lot of sense. Perhaps we will see a changing of the guard and Allen will begin to rise towards the top again. Or maybe the former heavyweight's power and always-solid takedown defense will prove too much for Allen.
Next Fight: Allen vs Jared Cannonier
Featured Bout: Joanderson Brito
Joanderson Brito lost a close split decision to William Gomis at UFC Paris in a fight which was highly controversial, with the Verdict (an app which tracks fan scoring for fights) scorecard giving Brito all three rounds. The Brazilian was on a five-fight win streak, with every win coming by finish, before losing this questionable decision. Joanderson did land fewer strikes on the stats than Gomis, but he landed three takedowns, had two decent submission attempts, and fans felt his blows were more consequential than the Frenchman’s.
Joanderson Brito defeated William Gomis on the Verdict Scorecard and it wasn’t close.
— Verdict (@VerdictMMA) September 28, 2024
Home field advantage in France?#UFCParis pic.twitter.com/dySdnW6V4p
Regardless, Brito now falls to 5-2 in the UFC and will not be getting a ranked opponent in his next fight, as he would have if the decision had gone his way. Still, he should not fall too much in the imaginary unranked rankings, so opponents like Nathaniel Wood, Alex Caceres, and Sodiq Yussuf would make sense for his next fight. Alex Caceres in particularly is interesting for Brito, as he is known as a flashy, dynamic striker who can also submit foes – just like Joanderson.
Next Fight: Brito vs Alex Caceres
Rest of the Main Card:
Kevin Jousset vs Matthew Semelsberger: The French/Kiwi fighter from City Kickboxing is now 2-1 in the UFC, and a fight against a good fighter on a losing streak – like ‘Semi the Jedi’ – makes sense now.
Gabriel Miranda vs Jose Delgado: The featherweight Brazilian grappling specialist is now 1-2 in the promotion and would be perfect to welcome a ‘Dana White’s Contender Series’ alumnus to their UFC debut, one like Jose Delgado, who recently won with a highlight reel knockout on week one of the 2024 DWCS season.
Matt Frevola vs Thiago Moises: After being ranked at lightweight only two fights ago, Frevola will get another fringe-ranked opportunity to right the ship. He may be out for a while due to the brutal knockout, but fellow former ranking-haver Thiago Moises seems like a perfect bounce back fight as a similarly well-rounded fighter, albeit one more focused on being technical than aggressive, unlike ‘Steamrolla.’
