Fight night is finally upon us, and the stakes couldn’t be higher as headliners Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit prepare to duke it out for the interim welterweight crown.
Although a new champion will be crowned tonight, the title will be short-lived; the recovering Georges St. Pierre continues to rehab as he prepares himself for a return to action late in 2012.
When St. Pierre finally makes it back to the Octagon, neither possible opponent will stand a chance against the reigning welterweight king. Both Diaz and Condit would be tough challengers, but the Canadian champion is just on another level.
To the chagrin of fans, St. Pierre’s grinding style of fighting would negate any attack plan that Diaz or Condit could conjure up. Both challengers would be forced to work off their back, a huge disadvantage. espcially for Condit. Without the jiu-jitsu skills that Diaz has, Condit would be thrust into unfamiliar territory with no tools to contend with the champion.
Diaz would have a better shot on the ground because of his tricky guard, but one must not forget that St. Pierre is also a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. When coupled with his wrestling, this makes for a very aggressive top game as well as a near-impenetrable submission defense game.
Standing, both fighters have a better shot at defeating St. Pierre, but his world-class boxing skills would be a clinic in how to stick a punch and move, avoiding any damage. St. Pierre has the uncanny ability to dissect his opponent’s weakness and exploit it, making his stand-up deceptively dangerous.
Regardless of who he faces, the recovering welterweight champ has all the skills he needs to defeat both Diaz and Condit.
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