NEW YORK – Benoit Saint-Denis continued his violent rise through the lightweight division Saturday when he knocked Matt Frevola out cold on the UFC 295 main card.
Saint-Denis (13-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) extended his octagon winning streak to five fights in the most vicious way imaginable when he unloaded a perfect left head kick that caught Frevola (11-4-1 MMA, 5-4-1 UFC) on the jaw and instantly dropped him. A couple shots on the mat forced referee Mike Beltran to jump in and call it off at the 1:31 mark of the opening frame at Madison Square Garden.
Check out the replay of the finish below (via X):
BENOIT SAINT-DENIS SHUT THE LIGHTS OUT 😳 #UFC295 pic.twitter.com/nDO3rd26Hj
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 12, 2023
There's a new lightweight contender in town 👀 #UFC295 pic.twitter.com/LsQsogT7yv
— UFC (@ufc) November 12, 2023
Saint-Denis is now on a five-fight winning streak at 155 pounds, all by stoppage. His winning streak trails only champion Islam Makhachev (12), and the Frenchman made it clear he’s coming for the top of the weight class, naming Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje and Mateusz Gamrot as fights of interest.
“I’m coming for everybody in the lightweight division,” Saint-Denis said in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. “It’s not going to stop until I have the belt around my waist. I’m going to come back here (one day) and defend the ‘BMF’ or lightweight belt.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 295 results include:
- Benoit Saint-Denis def. Matt Frevola via knockout (head kick) – Round 1, 1:31
- Diego Lopes def. Pat Sabatini knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:30
- Steve Erceg def. Alessandro Costa via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Loopy Godinez def. Tabatha Ricci via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
- Mateusz Rebecki def. Roosevelt Roberts via verbal submission (armbar) – Round 1, 3:08
- Viacheslav Borshchev vs. Nazim Sadykhov declared majority draw (29-28, 28-28, 28-28)
- Jared Gordon def. Mark Madsen via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:42
- John Castaneda def. Kyung Ho Kang via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Joshua Van def. Kevin Borjas via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jamall Emmers def. Dennis Buzukja via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 0:49
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 295.
