Benoit Saint-Denis is a French mixed martial artist who competes in the lightweight division of the UFC. Prior to his professional career, he juggled other forms of combat sport including judo, kick-boxing, and the Brazillian Jui Jutsu. He also served in the army for 5 years and was majorly concerned with fighting terrorist groups.
While Benoit pursues his MMA career, he also works as an instructor and trainer for Chiron – a French private security company. Here’s all to know about him.
A Brief Biography of Benoit Saint-Denis
Benoit Saint-Denis was born on December 18, 1995, and he’s 29 years old right now. He was raised in Nimes, France. There are dearths of information about his early life and family background which make it difficult to assert if he is an only child or has other siblings.
However, he describes his childhood as a happy one that saw him juggle between school, football, and judo. His father was a French army who had great skills in judo while his mother was a teacher.
A Look at His Career as a Martial Artist
Benoit Saint-Denis’ interest in combat sports was spurred as a child. He started practicing judo at the age of 8 and by 16, he had already won a blackbelt.
His professional career began in 2018 as he started off with kickboxing as well as Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu. For the latter, he holds a brown belt in jiu-jitsu under head coach Christophe Savoca.
In the same year, he also went into martial arts and won the Invictus amateur tournament, on December 15, 2018, in San Sebastian, Spain. Following this, he made his professional debut and trained full-time for 2 years to get signed with the UFC.
In 2021, Benoit made his UFC debut against Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos but lost the fight via unanimous decision after holding on multiple times. He later faced Gabriel Miranda in 2022 after his scheduled opponent Christos Giagos pulled out in August, a month before the fight following a domestic accident injury.
Unfortunately, two of his recent fights have also been canceled following cases of injuries. As you would find he was scheduled to face Joe Solecki on February 18, 2023, at UFC Fight Night but he withdrew from the bout as a result of an ankle injury.
Also,, his fight with Vinc Pichel scheduled for July 1, 2023, was canceled after his opponent pulled out in late May due to injury but was replaced by Ismael Bonfim.
He Previously Served in the Army before Joining the Martial Arts
Before Benoit Saint-Denis declared his interest to become a professional MMA fighter, he first served in the army for 5 years. He revealed that he had always wanted to be part of the French special forces and got the opportunity to join after he graduated from school.
The 5 feet 11 inches fighter was a member of the Marine Infantry Paratroopers Regiment, a unit of the French Army Special Forces Command that was largely concerned with fighting terrorist groups in West Africa. Asides from this, he was an operator for the special air service (SAS) in France. He also served during the Mali War as he was in the external force.
Even though Benoit has long joined martial arts, he also works as an instructor and trainer for Chiron, a French-based private security company.
Read Also: Who Is Gabriel Santos? Everything To Know About The MMA Fighter
Benoit Saint-Denis is Married to Laura Saint-Denis
The MMA fighter is currently married to Laura. It’s unclear how the pair met and when their relationship kicked off. However, we garnered that they exchanged vows on August 27, 2022, and they announced in June 2023 that they are expecting their first child. In the caption, the martial artist said they await the arrival of the younger god of war.
Benoit’s wife, Laura is a former French international futsal player who won the European Champions League with Toulouse Metropole FC. At the moment, she works as a dog trainer with the police and undergoes a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) course as one of the few French female police officers.
What is Benoit’s Net Worth?
Benoit’s primarily earns from his career as an MMA fighter. While he hasn’t disclosed how much he makes from each fight, Richathletes estimates him at $2 million. As you would easily find, martial arts are not the only career he earns from. He also works with a private security agency as an instructor and also promotes nutrition brands and products such as Nutri-muscle.
Also, he previously served in the army for 5 years and may have garnered an impressive amount from his time of service.
The above figure is not in any way the true value of his worth as his career in the MMA gives him many opportunities to increase this value.
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