Renato Moicano is not overlooking the skills of his UFC Paris opponent Benoit Saint-Denis ... saying he may one day sit atop the division -- but it ain't happening on his watch!
TMZ Sports caught up with the 11th-ranked lightweight contender ... days before he's set to take on 12th-ranked Saint-Denis in his home country of France, and while Moicano sees a bright future for the 28-year-old Frenchman, he's looking to derail his rise to the top.
"I'm here to stop him," Moicano said. "I'm here to get the W in Paris and to keep climbing the rankings."
We also asked RM about fighting in enemy territory.
"They're gonna be cheering for him very hard, I'm pretty sure," Renato said, adding, "It is what it is I'm prepared."
As for how he intends to win the fight, Moicano says he's prepared for the bout to go a bunch of different ways -- as long as he gets his hand raised.
"I'm planning to finish him, to knock him out, to win by a decision," he said. "The way the fight presents to me, I will take advantage of that. So I can finish him, I can knock him out and I can beat him in a decision."
There's a bunch more with Renato ... including what he has planned for his post-fight interview (they're usually legendary), and a potential opportunity to coach The Ultimate Fighter across from Paddy Pimblett.
We also talked to Benoit ... and as you might've guessed, he sees things going a bit differently.
"I want to make war," he said. "I wanna win it, so it's gonna be any way possible.