Benoit Saint-Denis released a statement following his second-round knockout loss against Dustin Poirier.
On Saturday night, Saint-Denis looked to extend his five-fight win streak against ‘The Diamond’ in the UFC 299 co-main event. The Frenchman found success early and won round one on all three scorecards before getting knocked out by Poirier in round two.
Earlier in the week, rumors began spreading about Saint-Denis potentially having a staph infection after his media day photos went viral. It turns out that the conspiracies were likely truly, as the 28-year-old had this to say on Instagram after his disappointing defeat:
“hello France, Unfortunately tonight I couldn’t fully express myself. My body didn’t keep up after a week of antibiotics to fight an infection. Throughout I was present but my body was absent, it did not react as usual. I only had one round to give you.”
Benoit Saint-Denis may have a staph infection ahead of his #UFC299 fight vs Dustin Poirier 👀 pic.twitter.com/lrQ6VL6GsS
— MMA UNCENSORED (@MMAUNCENSORED1) March 8, 2024
Watch Poirier knock out Saint-Denis at UFC 299 below:
Dustin Poirier knocks out Benoit Saint-Denis!! pic.twitter.com/xs9NGSmtwR
— AJ (@PrestigePrince9) March 10, 2024
Benoit Saint-Denis vows to ‘come back stronger’ after suffering knockout loss against Dustin Poirier
Benoit Saint-Denis started his UFC tenure with a short-notice loss against Elizeu Zaleski. The Frenchman’s gutsy performance earned respect from fans, leading to him building momentum with five consecutive wins inside the distance. Although he suffered a setback at UFC 299, Saint-Denis has plenty of time to evolve into a world champion.
During the previously mentioned Instagram statement, Saint-Denis had this to say about bouncing back later this year:
“Sorry to disappoint you, I will come back stronger, thanks to Dustin for accepting this fight. It was impossible for me not to seize the opportunity of such a fight. Thanks everyone for the support, Thanks my team and family”
Benoit Saint-Denis is currently the number twelve-ranked lightweight before the UFC 299 updates. Therefore, it’ll be intriguing to see who he fights next after coming up short against number three-ranked Dustin Poirier.
As for Poirier, he’s temporarily silenced any conversations about him retiring that stemmed from his violent knockout loss against Justin Gaethje. Due to his star power, ‘The Diamond’ could face Islam Makhachev next for the lightweight title or compete in a number one contender bout.
Check out Saint-Denis’ statement about his UFC 299 loss below:
