Benoit Saint Denis had an enormous alternative in entrance of him at UFC 299, and he wasn’t going to let something cease him from taking it, together with a brutal battle camp, in addition to a staph an infection.
Dustin Poirier ended up knocking Saint Denis out in Spherical 2 of the March co-main occasion in an unimaginable battle. As Saint Denis prepares to headline Saturday’s UFC Paris occasion in entrance of his residence crowd, he mirrored on the teachings realized from difficult one of many biggest lightweights of all time.
“I realized quite a bit,” Saint Denis advised MMA Combating. “First, I realized that you must underestimate no one, particularly high fighters like that, and you’ll’t go on the market not being wholesome. That’s large. However, regardless of that, I realized quite a bit. Nothing comes by mistake, I consider if I had this staph an infection this late into my camp, it’s as a result of I used to be careworn and I took no pleasure in my coaching camp.
“I had lots of stuff, new stuff to handle that I used to be not used to. If you turn out to be any person within the sport, you then have the shoulders of a CEO as a result of you have got all of the workers and the administration round you, lots of people and also you cope with the brand new stuff that’s tough to when it’s model new. It takes time to have that have. I consider being on the high can also be a [tough] expertise, and having the ability to handle your schedule and to nonetheless benefit from the technique of being a fighter. It’s a very powerful factor and to make the folks which might be with you pleased with your efficiency, and to have folks with you that you just wish to make pleased with the efficiency you’re gonna ship.
“So that is necessary. We made lots of changes and I’m actually completely happy now. And I took pleasure in coaching and I’ll get pleasure from my battle.”
Saint Denis revealed his staph an infection following the loss, which led to a horrible weight minimize, and only a unhealthy battle week generally. Deep down, Saint Denis thought-about withdrawing, however after weighing his choices, he felt both approach may very well be probably disrespectful to Poirier; face him at lower than 100%, however nonetheless have the possibility to attain the largest win of his profession, or really feel like “The Diamond” wasted weeks and weeks of coaching to not battle.
“It was disrespectful to go on the market in opposition to a man of this stage being in such a nasty situation,” Saint Denis mentioned. “However it was additionally disrespectful to name the battle [off] throughout battle week [for a fight] the man has been making ready laborious for. It was a dilemma for me and it had been bringing lots of stress in the course of the battle week to not know what to do. It was a tough scenario.
“You recognize, I consider guys like Khabib [Nurmagomedov], and high [teams] that they’ve lots of expertise. They’ve referred to as lots of fights in the course of the battle week due to a nasty minimize, or due to a staph an infection. And yeah, it was laborious for me as a result of me and my group, we’re coming, not out of nowhere, however I used to be the primary man of my group to co-headline such an occasion and to be at this stage although. We don’t have expertise with these form of alternatives. So Tuesday [of fight week] we [made] the choice to undergo and to do no matter I can within the situation that [I was] in.
“It was a tough, it was unhealthy occasions however I feel like I mentioned, it doesn’t come accidentally. I’ve been by this case as a result of I had a scarcity of professionalism in managing my stuff [with] my weight, and lots of stuff that I needed to professionalize. .. It was an enormous battle, large alternative for me, nevertheless it was a coaching camp the place I used to be al virtually in melancholy. So I consider in the event you [want to perform], you wish to have large efficiency, you must be completely happy to do what you like, and after which be completely happy to ship the very best efficiency you may to all people.”
With hindsight being what it’s, the teachings realized outweighed the outcomes from UFC 299. Poirier went on to problem for the light-weight title, arising quick in a Struggle of the Yr contender at UFC 302 in June.
Saint Denis didn’t let that get him down, and ultimately, the story of that loss is a vital chapter within the “God of Battle” story.
“I can not have regrets as a result of it’s a lesson,” Saint Denis mentioned. “All of the stuff that went unhealthy [before the fight I had to manage], however I’ve completely no regrets as a result of I used to be fortunate sufficient that the battle went properly for me for so long as it went. So I’m a fortunate man.”
