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Georges St-Pierre’s Coach All Praise For ‘Genius’ Merab Dvalishvili’s UFC 306 Performance

Georges St-Pierre’s coach, Firas Zahabi, recently showered Merab Dvalishvili with high praise for his performance against Sean O’Malley at Noche UFC 306. “The Machine” lived his dream of becoming the UFC bantamweight champion, overpowering defending titleholder O’Malley in a commanding display last Saturday at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Dvalishvili put constant forward pressure on […]

Continue Reading Georges St-Pierre’s Coach All Praise For ‘Genius’ Merab Dvalishvili’s UFC 306 Performance at MMA News.

Georges St-Pierre’s coach, Firas Zahabi, recently showered Merab Dvalishvili with high praise for his performance against Sean O’Malley at Noche UFC 306.

“The Machine” lived his dream of becoming the UFC bantamweight champion, overpowering defending titleholder O’Malley in a commanding display last Saturday at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

Dvalishvili put constant forward pressure on “Suga” from the start, shutting down his explosive striking game while overwhelming him with a flurry of takedowns, controlling the majority of the bout with his grappling dominance.

Heading into the fight, Dvalishvili was viewed as the underdog, with many expecting him to be outclassed by O’Malley’s dynamic striking. However, the 33-year-old Georgian defied all odds.

Zahabi believes Dvalishvili executed his game plan flawlessly, allowing him to dominate the bout…

Zahabi Says Dvalishvili Didn’t Throw A ‘Sloppy Punch’ O’Malley Could Counter

In a recent video on Tristar Gym’s YouTube channel, Zahabi shared his thoughts on the Noche UFC 306 main event between O’Malley and Dvalishvili. The acclaimed MMA coach praised “The Machine” for his precision and tactical awareness, noting how Dvalishvili expertly stayed out of O’Malley’s striking range.

Zahabi highlighted that the newly crowned champion didn’t throw a single punch that “Suga” could have exploited for an easy counter.

“When it comes to fighting, that guy [Dvalishvili] is a genius. The guy is really, really smart,” Zahabi said. “His timing was correct, his shot selections were very intelligent. He started off with kicking high. He did everything but throw a punch that you can counter. He did everything except throw a sloppy punch, which O’Malley would have cleaned up.

Zahabi applauded Dvalishvili’s exceptional cardio, noting that his incredible endurance keeps him relentless throughout the fight. However, he did acknowledge that despite this, Dvalishvili’s inability to secure more finishes remains a point of critique.

“The only thing you can predict about Merab is he’s gonna shoot for the takedowns, and his cardio is unmatchable. His cardio is ridiculous, guys. The good thing about Merab is his cardio is amazing, his personality is amazing. The bad thing about Merab is he doesn’t finish; he doesn’t even get close to a finish.”

With his recent victory, Dvalishvili extended his impressive winning streak to 11, adding to his résumé triumphs over former champions like Jose Aldo, Henry Cejudo, and Petr Yan.

It remains to be seen who “The Machine” will face in his first title defense, but for now, undefeated rising star Umar Nurmagomedov appears to be the leading contender.

Read More: Umar Nurmagomedov’s Coach On Merab Dvalishvili: ‘Cain Velasquez In The Bantamweight Division’

Continue Reading Georges St-Pierre’s Coach All Praise For ‘Genius’ Merab Dvalishvili’s UFC 306 Performance at MMA News.

St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win

Dricus Du Plessis retained the middleweight title at UFC 305 by submitting Israel Adesanya in the fourth round. Considering the styles of both fighters, it’s not necessarily surprising to see the champion get the victory in this fashion but the result doesn’t tell the full story. “Stillknocks” was able to get the tap by hurting […]

Continue Reading St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win at MMA News.

Dricus Du Plessis retained the middleweight title at UFC 305 by submitting Israel Adesanya in the fourth round.

Considering the styles of both fighters, it’s not necessarily surprising to see the champion get the victory in this fashion but the result doesn’t tell the full story.

“Stillknocks” was able to get the tap by hurting Adesanya on the feet, jumping on his back and quickly locking in the choke which his opponent admitted was caused by a simple mistake that he made in defending it.

Du Plessis has always been a very effective finisher with 20 of his 22 pro wins ending inside the distance but what impressed one of the top minds in the sport was how he circumnavigates a basic rule of Jiu-Jitsu to threaten with submissions.

Firas Zahabi Breaks Down How Dricus Du Plessis Ignores Jiu-Jitsu Fundamentals When Finishing Fights

Firas Zahabi gave his thoughts on the main event during a recent YouTube video on the Tristar Gym channel where he pointed out an interesting element of Du Plessis’ game which may have been overlooked.

The head coach of Georges St-Pierre referenced how one of the first things you’re taught in Jiu-Jitsu is that you go position over submission.

Especially in MMA where strikes are involved, going for an attack and losing your position as a result can be incredibly costly, but the middleweight champion ignores this altogether.

Rather than looking to control Adesanya first, he went right for the choke which caught his opponent off guard and gave him insufficient time to regain his bearings.

Zahabi highlighted this after seeing the South African champ pull off his first title defense.

“He choked him and I realized something about Du Plessis. When Du Plessis gets somebody down, he jumps immediately on the choke, he doesn’t solidify position you know and in Jiu-Jitsu, we’re always taught, the old school mentality was like position, position, position, and then submission. It was like always burnt into our minds. You take the guy down, you stabilize him, you stabilize him, you stabilize him and then you submit him. Well Du Plessis doesn’t do that, he flies in the face of everything everybody ever told us.”

Continue Reading St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win at MMA News.

St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win

Continue Reading St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win at MMA News.

Dricus Du Plessis retained the middleweight title at UFC 305 by submitting Israel Adesanya in the fourth round.

Considering the styles of both fighters, it’s not necessarily surprising to see the champion get the victory in this fashion but the result doesn’t tell the full story.

Firas Zahabi Breaks Down How Dricus Du Plessis Ignores Jiu-Jitsu Fundamentals When Finishing Fights

The head coach of Georges St-Pierre referenced how one of the first things you’re taught in Jiu-Jitsu is that you go position over submission.

Especially in MMA where strikes are involved, going for an attack and losing your position as a result can be incredibly costly, but the middleweight champion ignores this altogether.

Rather than looking to control Adesanya first, he went right for the choke which caught his opponent off guard and gave him insufficient time to regain his bearings.

Zahabi highlighted this after seeing the South African champ pull off his first title defense.

“He choked him and I realized something about Du Plessis. When Du Plessis gets somebody down, he jumps immediately on the choke, he doesn’t solidify position you know and in Jiu-Jitsu, we’re always taught, the old school mentality was like position, position, position, and then submission. It was like always burnt into our minds. You take the guy down, you stabilize him, you stabilize him, you stabilize him and then you submit him. Well Du Plessis doesn’t do that, he flies in the face of everything everybody ever told us.”

Continue Reading St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win at MMA News.

Georges St-Pierre’s Coach Labels Ji?í Procházka’s UFC 303 Performance As ‘Worst Approach To A Fight Ever’

Ji?í Procházka was unable to reclaim the UFC light heavyweight title in a rematch with Alex Pereira this past weekend in Las Vegas. Despite believing that he had made some significant adjustments for his approach this time around, UFC 303 was a far more one-sided affair than their previous encounter last November. Though it is […]

Continue Reading Georges St-Pierre’s Coach Labels Ji?í Procházka’s UFC 303 Performance As ‘Worst Approach To A Fight Ever’ at MMA News.

Ji?í Procházka was unable to reclaim the UFC light heavyweight title in a rematch with Alex Pereira this past weekend in Las Vegas.

Despite believing that he had made some significant adjustments for his approach this time around, UFC 303 was a far more one-sided affair than their previous encounter last November.

Though it is true that Procházka was having success in the first fight until he was stopped in the second round, he was seemingly fighting a losing battle mostly due to the damage that was done to his leg early on in the fight.

The same thing happened on Saturday night but Pereira was able to find a home for his devastating left hook even earlier on this occasion, before finishing the fight at the start of the second round with a head kick.

Firas Zahabi Criticizes Ji?í Procházka For Being Happy To Strike With Alex Pereira

The highly-regarded MMA coach Firas Zahabi gave his breakdown of the fight during a recent video on the Tristar Gym YouTube channel.

He was very critical of the approach that Procházka came into the rematch with because there wasn’t enough emphasis placed on switching things up on Pereira.

Zahabi referenced how there is a stark difference in the amount of MMA experience that both men have, with Procházka coming into the main event with 36 pro fights compared to Pereira’s 13.

The former coach of Georges St-Pierre couldn’t understand why the challenger wouldn’t look to take advantage of this by trying to take the former world champion kickboxing out of his comfort zone.

“You’d think Ji?í would have like 10 more years under his belt in wrestling and still he didn’t even fathom a takedown. He tried one little clinch, he didn’t even knock on that door. Very disappointing strategy by Ji?í. Ji?í was just seemingly happy to strike and I will tell you, within the first minute of round one, “Poatan” had landed like four kicks and you could tell he was already hurting Ji?í’s leg.

“Ji?í’s game plan and performance, I think that was his worst approach to a fight ever, he’s ever had. I heard he was like three days in a cave somewhere meditating, thinking about this fight, how he’s going to approach it. Unfortunately for him it really didn’t work.”

Read More: Daniel Cormier On State Of The UFC LHW Division Now Compared To Five Years Ago: ‘How Long Can Alex Pereira Reign…’

Continue Reading Georges St-Pierre’s Coach Labels Ji?í Procházka’s UFC 303 Performance As ‘Worst Approach To A Fight Ever’ at MMA News.

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier Encouraged to ‘Step In’ and win the heavyweight title once again

Could we see UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier make a comeback and once again claim the heavyweight world…

Could we see UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier make a comeback and once again claim the heavyweight world title?

According to famed MMA coach Firas Zahabi, that’s exactly what ‘DC’ should do if Alex Pereira makes good on his aspirations to become a three-division champ. Last month, ‘Poatan’ joined an elite list by becoming the latest fighter to claim two titles in as many divisions, capturing the light heavyweight crown with a second-round knockout of Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295.

Already capturing the middleweight title in 2022, Pereira likes the idea of moving to heavyweight in an attempt to add another hunk of gold to his collection.

However, Zahabi isn’t very confident in Pereira’s chances at heavyweight, particularly against the division’s undisputed champion, Jon Jones. But should the ‘Brazilian Boogeyman’ claim a third belt someday, the Tristar Gym owner believes it’s a perfect opportunity for Cormier to come back and take the title.

“If Jon Jones was in the picture, it would be a quick one-rounder — one-and-a-half rounds max, two rounds, at best, on Pereira’s best day,” Zahabi said on YouTube. “If Pereira wins the fight, Cormier’s got to step in, win the title, retire again. That’s what I would do.”

Interestingly, Zahabi continuously referred to Alex Pereira as the “interim champion.” It may have been a simple oversight, but it could have also been an attempt to throw some shade at ‘Poatan,’ suggesting that Jon Jones is still the rightful owner of the 205-pound crown. After all, ‘Bones’ never technically lost it.

“Alex Pereira is the interim champion. That’s an official championship — he is the champion of the world,” Zahabi said. “If Jon Jones is still active and competing, in my mind, he is the champ” (h/t MMA News).

Could you see Daniel Cormier stepping back inside the Octagon someday, or is the former champ-champ better off staying behind the microphone?

Famed MMA coach Firas Zahabi Shocked by UFC’s Split with USADA: ‘One guy is going to ruin it for everybody’

Famed MMA coach Firas Zahabi was shocked to learn of the UFC’s imminent split with the United States Anti-Doping…

Famed MMA coach Firas Zahabi was shocked to learn of the UFC’s imminent split with the United States Anti-Doping Agency.

Last month, USADA CEO Travis Tygart revealed that the two organizations would no longer work together come January 1, 2024, ending an eight-year partnership. At the center of the bitter split was Irish megastar Conor McGregor, whose long-awaited return to the Octagon put a strain on the relationship between the UFC and USADA, making it “untenable” according to Tygart.

The news came completely out of left field and caused quite a stir in the MMA community with coaches, fighters, and fans concerned that without a third party to handle testing duties, the UFC could essentially make up their own rules and find ways around them at will.

GSP Coach Firas Zahabi Shocked that ‘One Guy is going to ruin it for everybody’

Firas Zahabi, head of Tristar Gym in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, offered his take on the situation via a video on the gym’s YouTube channel.

“I just saw a headline and I don’t even remember the headline but there could be a lot more to it, obviously. If that’s the case, man, what can I say? I’m speechless, man,” Zahabi said. “I’m speechless. That’s ridiculous. One guy is going to ruin it for everybody? We need drug testing guys, it’s out of control. The drugs are out of control, am I the last natural guy left?” (h/t BJPenn.com).

Conor McGregor re-entered the USADA testing pool last month, just in time for a return at the promotion’s next milestone event, UFC 300, in April.

With the UFC opting for an in-house testing system headed up by ex-FBI special agent George Piro, the Irishman could theoretically return anytime after December 31, 2023, but with Dana White announcing three blockbuster title fights to headline the first three pay-per-view events of the new year, McGregor’s rumored return at UFC 300 appears to be all but confirmed.