Heading into UFC 167’s main event between Georges St-Pierre and Johny Hendricks, arguably the most prominent talking point surrounded the question of which fighter would hold the wrestling advantage.
While St-Pierre has long been considered the most dominant wrestler in the sport, in Hendricks, he was facing a man who had been on the mats since the age of five, who had earned two division one national titles at Oklahoma State and was seconds away from winning a third.
But we had seen this storyline play out before, or so we thought. In his two fights against Josh Koscheck—a national champion in his own right—GSP was able to dictate the terms of the fight for the most part.
The most prohibitive feature of the 32-year-old’s game has always been his ability to keep opponents guessing, changing levels and timing his shots with Swiss precision.
As Hendricks and St-Pierre met in the center of the cage, it looked as though we were in for more of the same. Within seconds of the opening bell, the long-time welterweight king had put “Bigg Rigg” on his back.
But almost as quickly as he went down, Hendricks scrambled to his feet and began his assault on St-Pierre.
It didn’t take long for the challenger to make a statement of his own, controlling the clinch game against the cage and dumping GSP to the mat.
The champion climbed to his feet, but these early exchanges set the tone for the rest of the fight. GSP was visibly discouraged, as Hendricks continued to shrug off several more takedown attempts.
More than just a moral victory, the challenger’s ability to dictate the terms of the fight robbed St-Pierre of his biggest strength.
In the rounds that followed, the champion all but abandoned any hope of taking Hendricks down. He was forced to compete in a straight kickboxing match.
The Canadian’s striking is ordinarily given the freedom to shine because of his wrestling. The constant threat of the takedown inspires hesitancy in his opponents, making even the most gung-ho of fighters gun-shy.
Without this seed of doubt, the puzzle of St-Pierre suddenly becomes soluble.
Hendricks was able work GSP over with his powerful striking, unfettered by the fear of being taken down, while continuing to control the fight whenever the pair clinched up.
The challenger succeeded in scoring another takedown in Round 4, keeping St-Pierre on his back and busting him open with some nasty ground and pound.
As if to add insult to injury, Hendricks hopped out of the champion’s guard voluntarily and allowed him to get to his feet.
Whether it was a tactical decision or purely mind games, it had the effect of reinforcing Bigg Rigg’s dominance to the viewers. Well, to almost every viewer besides two of the three that mattered: the judges.
Hendricks may not have officially beaten St-Pierre, and most of the contest took place on the feet, but make no mistake, his wrestling was responsible for him “winning” the fight.
Should GSP reconsider his decision to step away from the sport, the wrestling storyline and how it develops will be central to the outcome of any rematch.
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