Music to listen to: Cold Blooded by Rick James
UFC 154 is in Canada so I’ll feature a Canadian artist.
Georges St. Pierre vs. Carlos Condit: GSP returns to the octagon after major knee surgery and a layoff of more than 18 months. He’s technically still the welterweight champion and hasn’t lost a fight since 2007, firmly placing him among the top mixed martial arts fighters in the entire world.
Condit has had a highly successful career as well, including becoming the WEC welterweight champion before the company was acquired by Zuffa. Since losing his UFC debut to Martin Kampmann, Condit has won five consecutive contests, including a decision over Nick Diaz at UFC 143 back in February to win the interim welterweight title.
Both men have developed similar styles, especially in the stand up, because of their shared relationship with trainer Greg Jackson. The trainer has abstained from working with either fighter in this contest but the blueprint of the fight plans will be known by each guy. Condit tends to be more aggressive in the standup than the Canadian who prefers a counter attack to stifle opponents. St. Pierre’s takedown attacks and wrestling are among the best in MMA so expect the ground attack to be a factor in this contest.
The biggest issue is whether St. Pierre can return to form off of the surgery against a top-flight competitor. Condit is a great fighter who has the ability to end the contest early while GSP gets adjusted to returning to the cage. Expect Condit to have some good offensive moments in the contest and even take a round or two. However the pick is St. Pierre by decision.
The Sports Inquirer 
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