Despite being taken down more times than a 4th string running back, landing no strikes, and nearly having his arms torn asunder by Georges St. Pierre, Dan Hardy has apparently begun his ‘don’t look at me look at him’ campaign, to explain why their UFC 111 bout wasn’t a show stopper. Yes, St. Pierre clearly decided not to mix it up with the British slugger on his feet; he acknowledged afterwards that his game plan was to take Hardy down where he could dominate. Makes sense right? Well, while speaking to MMA Junkie, Dan Hardy criticized GSP’s approach to fighting, which apparently is too much about winning…
“I was saying this in the buildup to the fight – ‘GSP’ doesn’t take risks in his fights anymore,” he said. “He knew that my strength was striking and (within) 17 seconds of the first round, he shot in for a takedown. I think that says a lot about his approach to the fight game. He goes in there to win the fight and keep the belt and not to beat his opponent.”
“You can only fight this way for so long before people start complaining. I think Saturday night highlighted that, and I think a lot of people have started complaining. I don’t know how we’re going to get around it, because as the sport is now, you can do that and win fights.”
Yes, GSP’s performance wasn’t necessarily fall off your seat entertaining, and “The Outlaw” also conceded earlier in the article that he needs to work on his ground skills, but, really, it just seems like the UFC needs to find St. Pierre someone who can actually test him.