Athletes
Thiago Moises: "I'm Not Even Close To My Prime"
Brazilian Lightweight Continues Evolution vs France's Saint Denis Saturday At UFC Paris
Thiago Moises has seen a lot in his pro MMA career. And considering that he’s still 28 years old, that experience and knowledge makes him more dangerous than a lot of his peers in the lightweight division.
“I feel that I'm not even close to my prime,” he said. “I feel that there's so much room to grow, so much to learn, so much to get better. That's my mindset. That's why I think you guys can see I evolve after each fight because of that mindset. I'll always want to get better. And, at 28 years old, I have a lot of experience, but I didn't reach my prime. I can't wait to see where I'm going to be in four years.”
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So when a three-fight winning streak that put him in the Top 15 led to back-to-back losses to Islam Makhachev and Joel Alvarez in 2021, he didn’t panic, he didn’t question whether he belonged among the elite in the division. He simply got back to work.
“I didn’t have any doubts,” said Moises. “I knew that I made some mistakes in those fights, so I just got back to the drawing board to keep training, getting better, fixing those mistakes, and I knew I would get another win streak again.”
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He was right.
Entering his Saturday matchup with Benoit Saint Denis in Paris, Moises has won two straight, submitting Christos Giagos and Melquizael Costa. The wins haven’t landed the Indaiatuba, Brazil native back in the rankings, but a victory over the streaking Saint Denis could do the trick. All he’s got to do first is get past the boos that will come along with facing a hometown favorite.
Moises is cool with that.
“I'm going to stop their party,” he laughs. “I'm going to be the guy who is going to make everybody sad. I used to fight for RFA and every fight for RFA or LFA I was going to fight the hometown guy. So it’s something that I'm used to.”
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At this point in a pro MMA career that began in 2012, Moises has experienced practically everything a fighter can in a ring or Octagon. Saint Denis, who has seen plenty as a veteran of the French Special Forces SAS, doesn’t have that in his back pocket, and sometimes, it’s the fighter with more experience who knows how to win a dogfight.
“I think experience at this level plays a huge part in this game because the decision making that you're going to do there controls the anxiety, and you have the experience being there against the best of the best,” said Moises. “I think everything counts, especially at the highest level.”
Thiago Moises Fight Week Interview | UFC Fight Night: Gane vs Spivac
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Thiago Moises Fight Week Interview | UFC Fight Night: Gane vs Spivac
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Saint Denis hasn’t been in the Octagon with a future UFC champion like Moises has. He hasn’t been in a UFC main event, and he hasn’t won fights over veteran names like Bobby Green, Michael Johnson and Alexander Hernandez. Not yet. But Moises is treating him like he has, and that may be the difference on Saturday.
“It doesn't motivate me when I fight lower level guys,” said Moises. “I don't feel the motivation or the excitement to train to get ready for the fight; it's not the same. So fighting a guy like Benoit, he's a dangerous fighter. He's pretty tough, he has heart and these fights make me excited to wake up, go train my best, and focus on my diet, on my sleep, my recovery. That's what I live for, to fight against the best.”
UFC Fight Night: Gane vs Spivac took place live from the Accor Arena in Paris, France on September 2, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
