Fan favorite lightweight contender Beneil Dariush has revealed who has been his toughest opponent in the UFC so far, and it’s not a former world champion.
From former champions Charles Oliveira and Tony Ferguson to dangerous contenders Mateusz Gamrot and Edson Barboza, veteran UFC fighter Beneil Dariush has faced a who’s-who of top-tier lightweight talent in the octagon – but who has given ‘Benny’ his toughest fight?
Beneil Dariush called out by Dan Hooker for return fight
Earlier this week, Dan Hooker listed Beneil Dariush as his top choice for his next UFC fight, telling AllStar Sport that whilst “he’s been very quiet about shooting his shot,” once an offer is made and “I get a contract through, I’ll sign that in about two seconds.”
Speaking via The Schmo YouTube channel, Dariush responded by stating “I don’t really care who they give me, that being said when I come back if the UFC says Moicano I’ll be like great; if they say Dan Hooker, great; if they give me someone top 5, great – whoever they give me, I’ll take it.”
Beneil Dariush reveals who has been his ‘toughest’ opponent in the UFC
The fan-favorite MMA reporter also asked Dariush who he thought had been his toughest opponent so far in the UFC; given that ‘Benny’ made his promotional debut in 2014 and has faced multiple world champions since, you’d think that would be a tough question to answer.
Whilst the first two names were unsurprisingly Arman Tsarukyan and Charles Oliveira, his two most recent opponents, Dariush noted that he couldn’t say either of them was his toughest foe considering how quickly they had both dispatched him back in 2023.
“Obviously, I didn’t really get a chance to test Arman [Tsarukyan] out or Charles [Oliveira]. Charles had some interesting things – he was tricky and experienced, but I really didn’t get to spend too much time with them.”
Dariush’s last victory in the UFC octagon came in October 2022 against Polish wrestler Mateusz Gamrot, who was also one of the athletes Dariush said gave him one of his hardest tests to date:
“Gamrot was, how do I put it, he just would not go away. He has this spirit, like he’s immovable with an indomitable spirit just that keeps coming you know – that was the thing about Gamrot,” said the 34-year-old, before finally settling on a surprising final answer:
“I think the most tricky guy I’ve fought is Rashid Magomedov.”
Whilst not particularly a household name nowadays, Rashid Magomedov competed in the UFC between 2014 – 2017 and went 5-1 in the promotion with notable wins over Bobby Green and Gilbert Burns.
In fact, Rashid was the first person to defeat Burns in the UFC, with the Brazilian possessing a perfect 10-0 record as a professional heading into their 2015 clash.
So, why did Dariush consider Magomedov to be his biggest challenge so far? For the simple reason when the pair locked horns in Mexico City back in 2016, Rashid refused to let fatigue stop him from reaching the judges’ scorecards.
“This was at altitude, [and] he was dying, like [he was] so tired, but he just kept finding little tricks here and there to stay competitive in the fight.”
Coach Rafael Cordeiro reveals ‘head trauma’ during camp
After two straight first-round knockout losses to Tsarukyan and Oliveira, Dariush has taken a well-deserved step back from hard sparring with head coach Rafael Cordeiro having recently revealed that ‘Benny’ suffered a concerning amount of head trauma in 2023.
Speaking via the Trocação Franca podcast, Cordeiro shared that Dariush “was knocked down twice and knocked out once in the gym” even before the two TKO losses in the UFC octagon.
“He had five situations during the year where his head was hurt. He’s a young kid, and it was a request I made for him to take some time. I don’t worry as a coach; I worry as a father. I have him as my kid and I don’t need to put him to real test for nothing right now.”
“Let’s see the fights that make sense for him for the moment he’s physically recovered,” said the veteran trainer, before adding:
“I’m not talking about confidence, he has confidence – it’s more of a neurological thing, I want him to worry about it for a moment because he was hit a lot.”