UFC Fight Night 226: Benoit Saint Denis vs Thiago Moises 09/02/2023 Fight Odds, Preview and Predictions

UFC Fight Night 226: Saint Denis vs Moises 09/02/2023 – Lightweights Benoit Saint Denis and Thiago Moises lock horns in a three-round slugfest that is part of the UFC Fight Night 226 card. The match is slated on Saturday, September 2, at the Accor Arena in Paris, France. ESPN+ will feature the showdown on for US-based TV audiences while TNT Sports will broadcast the proceedings of the match for UK subscribers. Meanwhile, mixed martial arts fans on the Internet can tune in to UFC Fight Pass as it will cover the fight via livestream format. Saint Denis and Moises are coming off face crank submission victories in their last assignments as they aim to extend their winning streaks for a chance to move up in the 155-pound rankings. Online MMA betting lines are already updated for UFC aficionados who want to earn a significant amount while watching an exciting clash.

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Main Card

Benoit Saint Denis

Since losing his first UFC fight in October 2021, Saint Denis (11-1, 1 NC; 3-1 UFC) has strung up three consecutive stoppage wins against Niklas Stolze (submission-2nd round), Gabriel Miranda (technical knockout-2nd round) and Ismael Bonfim (submission-1st round) to become one of the most exciting prospects in the 155-pound division. Now, the fighter known as “God of War” comes back to the octagon in his hometown Paris as he aims to make it four in a row and push him closer to tougher, yet more lucrative fights in the lightweight division. He will come into the fight with a two-inch height advantage and 2 1/2 reach edge that he can use to fend off Moises’ attacks.

Stats wise, Saint Denis has finished all of his opponents, with nine coming by way of submission. He only lost once by unanimous decision against Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in his UFC debut and has one no contest. The French fighter has connected on 50% of his significant strike attempts and averaged 4.11 significant strikes landed per minute. However, he needs to improve on his stand-up defense as he has absorbed 6.14 strikes per minute and his proficiency rate in this aspect is a mere 41%. His grappling skills are excellent as he has averaged 3.8 takedowns per 15 minutes but his accuracy rate is just 29% per match. Saint Denis has stopped 85% of the takedown attempts against him and averaged 1.9 submissions per 15 minutes.

Thiago Moises

Moises (17-6, 6-4 UFC) is an 10-fight veteran inside the octagon and he was able to stamp his class in the division. He is coming off two consecutive submission wins over Christos Giagos in June 2022 and Melquizael Costa in January this year. Moises will be up against a pro-Saint Denis crowd who will be cheering for the Frenchman once the bell ring. The Brazilian will enter the fight on a two-inch height disadvantage but he has been able to negate them with some non-stop action from the opening bell.

Moises has 11 finishes in (23 fights) with eight ending by submission and three by knockout. He has landed an average of 2.47 significant strikes per minute at an accuracy rate of 39%. He has absorbed 3.9 strikes per minute and his defense rate against strikes was an above average 56%. In terms of grappling, Moises has a 41% success rate in taking down opponents. He has averaged 1.53 takedowns per 15 minutes. The Brazilian fighter was successful in defending his opponents takedown attempts with a takedown defense rate of 60%. He has averaged of 1.28  submission attempts per 15 minutes.