Athletes
Last Time In Paris
Each Time The Octagon Arrives Inside Accor Arena, The Action Delivers. That Was No Different Last Year At UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs Saint Denis
Next Saturday, the Octagon makes its return to the City of Light for the fourth year in a row. UFC held its first event in Paris, France back in 2022, and each year the cards have delivered, with Accor Arena packed full of fight fans excited for the action.
Each year when we reflect on what happened in years prior, we think that it’ll be hard to top the previous showings, and yet it happens every time. The promotion makes its return next weekend with a card topped by a massive middleweight fight that features France’s own Nassourdine Imavov taking on Brazil’s Caio Borralho in a fight that could deliver a future contender for newly crowned champion Khamzat Chimaev. Before the Octagon touches down in Paris next week, let’s take a look back at some of the highlights from last year’s September trip.
Money Moicano Spoils The Party
In each of the UFC events held in Paris so far, there has been a Frenchman in the main event. That continued last year when France’s own Benoît Saint Denis took on surging Brazilian Renato Moicano. Heading into the fight, Moicano was on a three-fight win streak, with two of those ending by submission. On the other hand, Saint Denis was hungry to bounce back from his loss to Dustin Poirier earlier that year.
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Despite the crowd in favor of “God of War,” it was all domination for Moicano. There was no waiting between the two men, as both exchanged early, but the Brazilian was able to get Saint Denis down to the canvas within the first minute of action. Halfway through the first round, Moicano started to land some damage that cut Saint Denis open. The dominant power on the ground continued for Moicano throughout the rest of the first round and when Saint Denis went back to his corner, he was busted up.
The Frenchman had his moments in the second round, but the damage that Moicano had done was too much, and the doctor came in after 10 minutes of action and put an end to the contest. It wasn’t the ending that the French fans wanted to see, but for Moicano, it marked his fourth win in a row and was another showing of the threat he possesses at 155 pounds.
Knockouts For Everyone
There was something in the Paris water once the main card action got underway inside the Accor Arena. Three insane knockouts made the night one to remember, and all warranted a Performance of the Night bonus when the night had concluded.
Farès Ziam got things started with a nasty knee knockout over Matt Frevola in the third round. As the two were clinched up against the cage, Frevola tried to spin around to gain control, and that’s when Ziam threw a knee straight to the jaw of Frevola, putting him out instantly. The Paris crowd went absolutely nuts.
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And that wouldn’t be the last time they celebrated, as France’s Morgan Charriere was the next to make the walk to put on a show once again for the fans. For the second year in a row, “The Last Pirate” delivered in Paris as he earned a clean knockout over Gabriel Miranda less than 30 seconds into the second round.
The final knockout on the main card prior to Moicano’s victory ended on the wrong side of things for the French fans, but it was an amazing moment for Bryan Battle. The welterweight thrived in enemy territory facing Kevin Jousset, who was born in France. After a back-and-forth scrap in the first round, “The Butcher” turned up the heat in the second as Jousset started to slow down, and once he got him up against the cage he started to rain down the punches, putting a stop to the contest and taking the momentum away from the French crowd.
Chris Duncan Kicks Things Off In Style
Not only did the beginning of the main card deliver, but Chris Duncan got things started in thrilling fashion in the very first fight of the night. The fight between Duncan and Bolaji Oki got started on the feet, but when Oki took things to the mat it got a little interesting.
“The Problem” showed off the guillotine skills he had been learning with Dustin Poirier at American Top Team. Originally it seemed that Oki had gotten out of the choke, but it was actually Duncan who signaled to the referee that Oki was out cold on top of him to secure the finish at 3:44 of the first round. With the victory, Duncan got back in the win column and earned himself a Performance of the Night bonus.
UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs Saint Denis took place live from Accor Arena in Paris, France on September 28, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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