Protecting Presidents & Fighting Terrorists - From The Army To Ufc

Benoit Saint-Denis provided protection for erstwhile French president Francois Hollande successful 2016.

He has been astatine nan forefront of counter-terrorism - rescuing hostages, stopping violent extractions and nullifying threats from groups for illustration Boko Haram.

The 29-year-old knowledgeable life-or-death situations during his five-year stint successful nan French subject which vanished successful 2019, but nan hardest infinitesimal of his life has not travel during his clip successful nan service - it arrived successful nan UFC.

Last March, Saint-Denis' five-fight winning streak successful nan promotion was ended by Dustin Poirier, and six months later he mislaid to Renato Moicano.

The defeats crushed Saint-Denis' momentum arsenic he collapsed from nan title picture.

Despite each his acquisition fighting for his country, he was not prepared for nan attraction that being an elite UFC combatant brings.

"All nan 2024 twelvemonth was nan hardest," Saint-Denis tells BBC Sport.

"It's nan pressure. The unit of popularity, nan expertise to support nan aforesaid passion and nan aforesaid occurrence for nan fight, contempt each nan worldly that is surrounding immense fights."

"To support concentrated connected your ngo and to triumph nan fight."

After suffering nan defeats by Poirier and Moicano, Saint-Denis revealed he had mostly been training himself for nan bouts, without nan power of a morganatic caput coach.

This was different to his clip successful nan military, wherever Saint-Denis learned really to travel orders impeccably.

"Being disciplined and being capable to person a plan, and to respect it, and to support adjacent to it was important," explains Saint-Denis.

He was utilized to mentors successful nan French service who helped instrumentality strategy successful nan astir pressurised of situations, and this was what he needed successful nan UFC.

After choosing to activity pinch Nicolas Ott, Saint-Denis returned to winning ways against Kyle Prepolec successful May.

He adjacent faces Brazilian lightweight Mauricio Ruffy astatine UFC Paris connected Saturday, and heads into nan bout astatine Accor Arena pinch a caller outlook connected fighting.

"Having a bully caput coach pinch nan aforesaid quality worth arsenic you and being disciplined. Loving what you do and getting a amended fighter," says Saint-Denis.

"Together we are getting better, together arsenic a squad and moving successful directions that makes maine a amended fighter."

Saint-Denis, who was calved successful Nimes, confederate France, formed portion of nan French Army Special Forces erstwhile he joined aged 18.

"Most of my activity arsenic a Special Force usability was successful nan sub-Saharan area. So Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger. I was mostly location against Boko Haram," says Saint-Denis.

Boko Haram is simply a militant Islamist group, designated arsenic a violent organisation by nan United Kingdom, which operates successful countries specified arsenic Nigeria, Niger and Mali.

Saint-Denis' activity mostly progressive moving successful counter-terrorism to combat nan threat of groups for illustration Boko Haram.

"When we are talking astir counter-terrorism, it's going to beryllium nan apprehension aliases nan demolition of violent threats. Or stopping violent extractions successful cities for illustration Timbuktu, for example," Saint-Denis says.

His squad were besides tasked pinch protecting important members of nan French government, for illustration Hollande, during overseas visits.

Saint-Denis looks backmost connected his clip successful nan French subject fondly.

"It was agelong and fatiguing and demanding, and aft this I deliberation I was a man - I was disciplined, and I knew really to activity to get things done," he says.

"It was very adventurous, and I loved it."

Fighting coercion and competing successful nan UFC are vastly different worlds pinch pressures of their own, but Saint-Denis does not person to dwell for agelong erstwhile deciding which is tougher.

"It depends connected nan occasion, but globally, I would opportunity being a UFC fighter," he adds.