UFC 295 Update: Matt Frevola to Face Benoit St. Denis in Lightweight Action Fight

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is not skimping on exciting matchups in its return to Madison Square Garden this November.

Per the Two to Tango with Steam & Scoob podcast on Friday, Matt Frevola (11-3-1) announced that he had signed a new deal with the UFC. The first fight on his new contract will be against surging Frenchman Benoit St. Denis (12-1, 1 NC), and the lightweights will tangle at UFC 295 on Nov. 11. This will be Frevola’s third jaunt at Madison Square Garden in New York, with a draw against Lando Vannata and a knockout of Ottman Azaitar in that building on his ledger.

“I’m finally making [Billy Quarantillo] money,” Frevola stated proudly. “I’m gonna announce it right here, right now. It’s gonna be Matt ‘The Steamrolla’ Frevola at MSG, and I’m fighting the French special forces killer in Benoit St. Denis. And, honestly, I had my questions about the French people, not gonna lie. In his last fight, he beat Thiago Moises, and I was like ‘man, this guy brings it.’ And these are the fights that I live for. These are the fights that excite me. I want another warrior. I want another guy who’s going to go in there and bring it. And…St. Denis brings it.”

Frevola has strung together three straight first-round knockouts, which constitute all but one of his career stoppages due to strikes. In 2022, “The Steamrolla” ran over Genaro Valdez and the aforementioned Azaitar in a combined five minutes and 45 seconds. In his lone appearance this year, Frevola sprang the upset and decked Drew Dober. Before the trio of wins, Frevola struggled in 2021, with a decision loss to Arman Tsarukyan followed by a seven-second knockout at the hands of Terrance McKinney.

Like his upcoming opponent, St. Denis has rattled off stoppages in all of his recent wins. The Frenchman competed twice in 2022, where he choked out Niklas Stolze and put down Gabriel Miranda in a flurry of fists in the span of three months. Returning in July, St. Denis emerged as a contender by tapping Ismael Bonfim with a powerful face crank. This September, St. Denis remained active by beating down Thiago Moises late into the second stanza. As a pro, “God of War” has never heard the final bell when recording a win.

UFC 295 goes down on Nov. 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York, with a heavyweight championship headliner of Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic for all the proverbial marbles. The co-headlining attraction will have gold on the line as well, as the returning former titleholder Jiri Prochazka vies for the vacant strap against ex-middleweight king Alex Pereira. Other possible main card tilts include a strawweight scrap pitting Jessica Andrade against Mackenzie Dern, and a flyweight tilt when Matt Schnell toes the line with Steve Erceg.