Dariush hoping to ‘save lives’ as missionary after fighting career

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Beneil Dariush has a mission near and dear to his heart. Beneil Dariush is well up his way in the UFC rankings but he already has his retirement plan in place.
“When I retire, to be honest…

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Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Beneil Dariush has a mission near and dear to his heart.

Beneil Dariush is well up his way in the UFC rankings but he already has his retirement plan in place.

“When I retire, to be honest, my goal is to be a missionary. I plan on going around and spreading the gospel,” Dariush told Pull No Punches podcast hosts Kajan Johnson and Shakiel Mahjouri prior to his fight with Frank Camacho at UFC Singapore.

“I want to say it was four years ago, maybe longer, I went to Haiti. Originally I’m from Iran. I was born in Iran. In Iran, we had a really good life. Everything is good. Iran is considered, I think, a Third World country. I don’t know what it is considered but it’s not considered to be up there. Iran is amazing. It’s beautiful. It has everything, everything you want. When I went to Haiti, I thought ‘whatever.’ I know that. I’m from that,” he shared. “I went there and I saw that it wasn’t the same. It is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. There were thousands of people living in tents. I saw so much suffering.”

“I truly believe the way to build a good civilization is to do it on Judaeo-Christian values because whenever you do it on Judaeo-Christian values you build amazing countries that give human beings intrinsic value,” he continued. “Because of that, I want to go around sharing the gospel. I think it will help these countries and help these people. I think it’s going to save lives.”

Dariush is hoping to start a family of his own. When asked how he will balance the pressures of fighting and fatherhood, he revealed that he has been caring for his family for a long time now.

“In 2012, my mom told me, ‘hey, we’re struggling at home. We don’t have the same money we used to. We are having problems.’ Since 2012, I’ve been the head of my house,” Dariush said. “I stepped up, I’ve been taking care of my family since I was 23. Having bills is nothing new. I believe God has prepared me. I’m at a point where I can have a wife and a child. More than one child, may kids, and be able to provide and take care of them.”

Dariush (16-4-1) is coming off a first-round submission win over Camacho (22-7). He is now riding a three-fight winning streak following consecutive losses to Alexander Hernandez and Edson Barboza.