When it was all said and done, Carlos Condit triumphed over Nick Diaz in a competitive bout that will now see him matched up against UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre later this year.
Throughout five rounds, Condit battled with Diaz and neutralized his walk-and-stalk boxing style with effective counterstriking and the implementation of good footwork with angles and movement.
Condit approached the bout with a very good strategy that seemed to mentally affect Diaz heading into the championship rounds—a different approach from Condit’s usual style of an aggressive attack.
With the win, it sets up an intriguing title bout with St-Pierre, but it was the one bout that most fans ignored in favour of a more marketable matchup with Diaz. The UFC invested a lot of time and money in the former Strikeforce welterweight titleholder in order to bring in a formidable challenger for the dominant champion.
The former WEC welterweight champion showed that Diaz’s high-volume attack and superior cardio could be beaten, and also proved that his style was rather one-dimensional and easy to figure out. As for Condit, he is more well-versed on the feet and throws different combinations with a variety of strikes—something Diaz seldom does.
Condit was the better fighter than Diaz and will be a challenge for St-Pierre, bringing a more well-rounded skill set into the bout.
Condit will now enter the biggest bout of his career against arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the sport.
Some fans may not be satisfied with the result, but Condit deserved the victory and is capable of hanging with the welterweight division’s elite fighters.
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