Georges St-Pierre talks about upcoming fight and his future
Georges St-Pierre says his skills will make up for fighting a larger Michael Bisping at UFC 217, but added that if he loses, he’s likely done in MMA. The former UFC Welterweight Champion said on The MMA Hour he will weigh around 200 pounds on the night of the fight. Even with the added weight, GSP acknowledged that Bisping would still be the bigger man but that it would not cause any problems.
“No, no, Michael Bisping is gonna be bigger than me for sure, but no problem,” St-Pierre said. “My skill will make the difference in the fight. I believe that skills always beat size.”
St-Pierre also talked about his future after the UFC 217 fight. If GSP wins, he said he is contractually obligated to fight the interim Middleweight Champion Robert Whittaker to unify the titles. If GSP loses, he said that he is probably finished with the sport.
“I believe if l lose, I’m finished,” St-Pierre said. “You never say for sure… but I, probably, if I lose, I think I’m finished.”
GSP said he does not plan on fighting past the age of 40, even if he wins future fights.
John’s Analysis: I don’t think weight will be a big factor in determining the outcome of this fight. We’ve all heard the cliché “styles make fights.” This is one of those “styles make fights.” GSP is a fighter who doesn’t like to put himself in harm’s way. Bisping is an aggressive endurance fighter who wears you down with his cardio and pressure. Neither fighter possess overwhelming power. So, what does all this mean? It means at UFC 217, GSP vs. Bisping will be a fairly uneventful decision win for one of these fighters. GSP will use his jab to stay on the outside and look for openings to take Bisping down. Bisping will come forward and look to pressure the smaller opponent. GSP will score takedowns. Bisping will use his size to get back up. Rinse and repeat.
Dana White says Conor McGregor gave Paulie Malignaggi a one-sided beating
In an interview with Sky Sports, UFC President Dana White totally dismissed Paulie Malignaggi’s claims that the footage of Conor McGregor beating him down in a recent sparring match was doctored.
“What am I, Steven Spielberg?” White said. “Come on, it’s footage. Footage of the actual sparring. Let me tell you, I was there for all twelve rounds and Paulie has said some crazy things, some bad things about me. I felt sorry for the guy. It was a one-way beating and a lot of people were saying Connor couldn’t box. Paulie was, you know, obviously lying about everything that he said about the sparring match. So, I released it. It was very one-sided. It was an absolute beating and guess what? I think it was the right thing for Paulie Malignaggi to definitely leave, for his health’s sake.”
John’s Analysis: I think a lot of MMA journalists and sites are burying the lead here. I see a lot of debating about the legitimacy of the knockdown. To me, the biggest talking point isn’t the knockdown. The main focus should be how McGregor looked sparring against a boxing world champion. McGregor looked like he was holding his own in the sparring footage. He landed some clean shots and displayed good head movement. Boxing experts who are saying McGregor won’t land a punch are foolish. Even though it was only twelve seconds of footage, McGregor looked very comfortable boxing. I was impressed with his movement and came away thinking he has a better shot against Floyd Mayweather than I initially thought.
TUESDAY NOTEBOOK ITEMS…
-Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir announced on Twitter that he has signed with Bellator MMA.
-Bellator MMA Flyweight Heather Hardy announced that she will be fighting Oct. 20 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
NOW CHECK OUT YESTERDAY’S UPDATE: MONDAY NEWS UPDATE 8/14: Matt Hughes recovery update, Rockhold comments on Weidman rematch (w/Analysis)
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