UFC interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit thinks Georges St. Pierre hasn’t really been trying to finish fights lately.
During an interview with MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Condit echoed the thoughts of many GSP detractors, saying that St. Pierre has been fighting to retain his title with conservative decision wins, instead of emphatic finishes.
When pressed by Helwani, Condit reiterated his critique:
Helwani: Just to be clear, you do think in his last few fights that [St. Pierre] hasn’t put forth 100 percent of his effort to try and finish the fights. Is that accurate?
Condit: Well, I mean—yeah, I guess I think he could’ve done more. He’s been looking to win, and I think maintain his position as apposed to really fighting with a lot of fire like he did when he was up-and-coming and a hungrier fighter. There’s a difference. But I don’t fault him for that. When you get to that position, things change. Motivations are different than they were when you were the young up-and-comer.
St. Pierre hasn’t finished an opponent since UFC 94 in January 2009, when he defeated former UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn by a fourth round corner stoppage. Matt Serra was the last fighter to be finished by St. Pierre’s own hands, via knees to the body, at UFC 83 in April 2008.
By contrast, Condit has finished three fighters in his UFC career (two of whom had never been defeated before, let alone on strikes). However, he also boasts an imperfect 5-1 record in UFC with his sole loss coming by split decision against Martin Kampmann.
Condit faces St. Pierre at UFC 154 on November 17, 2012 in a title unification bout in Montreal, Canada. GSP will be returning to the Octagon for the first time in over 18 months following a severe ACL injury.
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