Mauricio Ruffy Questioned By MMA Analyst Following UFC Paris Defeat

MMA analyst Din Thomas has admitted that he may have been wrong about Mauricio Ruffy in the wake of his defeat at the hands of Benoit Saint Denis.

At UFC Paris, Benoit Saint Denis put on an impressive display as he submitted Mauricio Ruffy in the French capital. Ruffy never really felt like he was in the fight, whereas BSD looked calm, confident and composed in his home country.

While Mauricio Ruffy is still young, this loss has left many wondering whether or not he’s still capable of reaching the very top of the lightweight division. During the post-show, Din Thomas admitted that he may have overestimated the Brazilian.

Din Thomas’ view on Mauricio Ruffy

“I’ve been high on Ruffy since he hit the stage,” Thomas said on the UFC Paris Post Show. “We’ve been making comparisons between him and Conor McGregor, and I expected that from Ruffy. 

“I said this guy, especially fighting a guy that gets wild like Benoit Saint Denis, I thought he would be able to pick him apart. I thought he was going to do something fascinating tonight, and the first body kick shook Ruffy up. Then the head kick shook him up. And I think that took Ruffy so far out of his game, he did not want to fight anymore.”

“He didn’t want to be out there anymore, and it surprised me,” Thomas said. “He made me eat my words. And I’m always happy when these guys can make me eat my words, because that means there’s something that I don’t know. I own up to it. 

“Benoit Saint Denis made me eat my words tonight. I was uncomfortable talking to Benoit Saint Denis about the fight, because I thought he was going to get beat up. Tonight he made me eat my words.

“And Mauricio Ruffy also made me eat my words. Maybe he’s not as good as we thought he was. Yet. He’s still got some work to do. But tonight he did not show up and he did not look like he wanted to be out there.”

Quotes via MMA Fighting