Saturday night in Paris was supposed to be another stepping stone for Mauricio Ruffy, the Brazilian lightweight many had pegged as a future UFC star. But under the bright lights of Accor Arena, Ruffy’s seven-fight winning streak came to a crashing halt, as he suffered his first defeat in the Octagon at the hands of hometown hero Benoit Saint Denis. The co-main event of UFC Paris delivered drama, but not the kind Ruffy’s fans were hoping for.
Ruffy, who had looked unstoppable since joining the UFC from the Contender Series, found himself in deep waters early. While he managed to land some crisp strikes in the opening exchanges, it quickly became apparent that Saint Denis was undeterred. The Frenchman, fighting in front of a roaring home crowd, absorbed the early storm and turned up the heat in the second round. That’s when everything unraveled for the 29-year-old Brazilian.
The pivotal moment came courtesy of a punishing body kick, followed by a thudding head kick from Saint Denis. The sequence seemed to sap the resolve from Ruffy, who, moments later, found himself trapped in a face crank (neck crank/rear-naked choke) submission. With nowhere to go, Ruffy was forced to tap, handing Saint Denis a triumphant return to the win column and leaving Ruffy to contemplate his first UFC setback.
“I’ve been high on Ruffy since he hit the stage,” said veteran analyst and former lightweight contender Din Thomas during the UFC Paris Post-Fight Show. “We’ve been making comparisons between him and Conor McGregor, and I expected that from Ruffy. I said this guy, especially fighting a guy that gets wild like Benoit Saint Denis, I thought he would be able to pick him apart. I thought he was going to do something fascinating tonight, and the first body kick shook Ruffy up. Then the head kick shook him up. And I think that took Ruffy so far out of his game, he did not want to fight anymore.”
Thomas’s comments echoed across MMA media in the hours following the fight. According to ESPN+, Thomas didn’t hold back, stating, “He didn’t want to be out there anymore, and it surprised me. He made me eat my words. And I’m always happy when these guys can make me eat my words, because that means there’s something that I don’t know. I own up to it. Benoit Saint Denis made me eat my words tonight. I was uncomfortable talking to Benoit Saint Denis about the fight, because I thought he was going to get beat up. Tonight, he made me eat my words.”
For Ruffy, the loss was a bitter pill after a meteoric rise. The Alagoas native had racked up impressive wins over Jamie Mullarkey and James Llontop, the latter coming at Madison Square Garden last November. That fight, though a unanimous decision win, had already raised questions about Ruffy’s readiness for the UFC’s elite. Llontop, who missed weight by a significant margin, was considered a late replacement, and Ruffy’s performance was seen as lackluster by some analysts.
“This is a big moment, big stage in front of President Trump,” Thomas remarked during the UFC 309 broadcast, referencing the high-profile nature of that Madison Square Garden event. Thomas’s skepticism after that fight seemed to foreshadow the doubts now swirling around Ruffy’s future.
Despite the criticism, Ruffy’s trajectory up to this point has been nothing short of impressive. His highlight-reel spinning wheel kick knockout of King Green at UFC 313 in March had fans and pundits alike buzzing about his potential. Comparisons to Conor McGregor, while perhaps premature, spoke to the excitement Ruffy brought to the lightweight division. At just 29 years old, time is still on his side, but the loss to Saint Denis has exposed some glaring holes—particularly in his grappling, an area he’ll need to shore up at the Fighting Nerds gym if he hopes to rebound.
Saint Denis, meanwhile, used the Paris stage to remind everyone of his own credentials. After back-to-back losses to Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano, the Nimes native was under pressure to prove he still belonged among the lightweight contenders. He did so emphatically, not only halting Ruffy’s momentum but doing so in front of a partisan French crowd that erupted as he locked in the finishing submission.
Thomas was quick to give Saint Denis his due: “Benoit Saint Denis made me eat my words tonight. I was uncomfortable talking to Benoit Saint Denis about the fight, because I thought he was going to get beat up. Tonight, he made me eat my words.” That humility from the analyst was a nod to the unpredictable nature of MMA, where hype and momentum can shift in a single round.
For Ruffy, the immediate question is how he bounces back from this adversity. “One Shot,” as he’s known, has shown resilience before—after the tepid win against Llontop, he silenced critics with his knockout of Green. But the defeat in Paris was a different kind of setback. It wasn’t just a loss; it was a fight in which his will appeared to fade under pressure, a trait that analysts and fans alike will scrutinize in his future outings.
“Maybe he’s not as good as we thought he was. Yet. He’s still got some work to do. But tonight he did not show up and he did not look like he wanted to be out there,” Thomas concluded on the UFC Paris Post Show. Those words will no doubt sting for Ruffy, but they also serve as a challenge—a call to address the gaps in his game and recapture the form that made him one of the division’s most talked-about prospects.
The lightweight division waits for no one, and with contenders jostling for position, Ruffy will need to regroup quickly. The Fighting Nerds gym has produced its share of warriors, and Ruffy’s age suggests he has time to evolve. But the blueprint for beating him is now out there, and future opponents will surely look to exploit his perceived vulnerabilities on the ground.
As the dust settles on UFC Paris, the spotlight remains fixed on both Ruffy and Saint Denis—but for very different reasons. Saint Denis has reignited his campaign in the lightweight ranks, while Ruffy faces the first true crossroads of his UFC career. Fans and pundits alike will be watching closely to see if the Brazilian can turn adversity into another highlight, or if Paris marks the beginning of a tougher road ahead.
With the lightweight picture as crowded as ever, Ruffy’s response to this defeat will be crucial. One thing’s for sure: the MMA world will be paying attention the next time he steps into the Octagon.
