Dustin Poirier gets mauled early on, KO’s Benoit Saint-Denis in UFC 299 co-main event
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to us tonight, March 9, 2024, for UFC 299, a 14-fight card going down from the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Headlining the event is bantamweight championship rematch between Sean O’Malley (17-1, 1 NC) and the only man to ever defeat him, no. 5 ranked Marlon Vera (23-8-1).
Co-headlining the event was a lightweight encounter between no. 3 ranked former interim champion Dustin Poirier (30-8, 1 NC) and no. 11 ranked Benoit Saint-Denis (13-2, 1 NC).
Dustin Poirier had gone 4-2 over his last six coming in with wins over Dan Hooker (UD), Conor McGregor twice (KO, TKO), and Michael Chandler (rear naked choke), with the losses coming to Charles Oliveira (rear naked choke) and Justin Gaethje (KO).
During this stretch Poirier became the first man to ever knock out McGregor, he also became the first man to ever submit Chandler, and he’s also the only man to ever finish Max Holloway.
Benoit Saint-Denis on the other hand, following defeat in his promotional debut up at 170 lbs, had since won five-straight over the likes of Niklas Stolze (rear naked choke), Gabriel Miranda (TKO), Ismail Bonfim (rear naked choke), Thiago Moises (TKO), and Matt Frevola (KO).
Continue reading to see how our lightweight co-main event of the evening went down:
Official Result: Dustin Poirier def. Benoit Saint-Denis via KO (punches) at 2:32 of round two
Saint-Denis landed a couple heavy leg kicks once the bout began, Poirier returning fire with one of his own. Saint-Denis then shot in on a takedown, being wrapped into a guillotine choke as Poirier falls to the mat. The choke was tight, but Saint-Denis escaped it and kept pressing Poirier as they returned to their feet.
Saint-Denis landed a series of knees in the clinch and secured another takedown, being forced to defend another tight guillotine choke. Saint-Denis escapes it once again and passes, ending the round in back mount.
Saint-Denis got dropped by a left hand early on in the second, before immediately shooting in on a takedown attempt, which he secured, escaping the guillotine attempt following as well. Saint-Denis eventually secured mount before Poirier turns over, giving up his back. Saint-Denis then threatened with rear naked choke attempts before Poirier got back to his feet.
Poirier hurt Saint-Denis with a right hand once again, dropping him and KO’ing him stiff with a single follow up punch.
Click here to view finish.
This was a tough one for Dustin Poirier. Benoit Saint-Denis was all over him, but he found his range and utilized his power and boxing technique to stop an incredibly durable, dangerous, and skilled opponent tonight at UFC 299.
As the tale goes, Dustin Poirier has never lost two-straight.
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