All of Canada seemed to be abuzz as UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre stepped into the cage for the first time in 17 months to do battle with interim champion Carlos Condit.
The questions were legion.
Could St-Pierre recover from a knee injury that almost cost him his career?
Why did Condit seem so darn confident?
And, the biggest question of all, why did fans outside the great white north seem so disinterested in the return of the man UFC president Dana White calls the sport’s biggest star?
Some of the questions will have to wait until the pay-per-view numbers come back, and we see if GSP still has the Midas touch at the box office. But some can be answered right away. GSP is back and as good as ever.
Of course, this wasn’t a one-man card. There were 12 fights on the show, leading to 12 winners and 12 losers. But, sometimes, the written result doesn’t tell the whole story.
Sometimes a fighter can lose a fight, and still, ultimately, win, whether it’s respect from the fans or a post-bout bonus check from the UFC brass. Other times, a winner in the Octagon can hurt himself badly in the court of public opinion with a disinterested or plain boring performance.
So, who were the real winners and losers at UFC 154? Let’s have a look.