Does He Fight Safe?: "That's true. I fight safe, and I'm not going to hide it. Every time I step into the octagon, my life is in jeopardy. For me, it's more important to not get hit than to hit the guy. I will never fight in a way [in which] I fight like I flip a coin. I never took risks. The only fight I took a risk was when I fought Matt Serra, and I went in a stupid exchange, and it was not smart. I got caught; Serra beat me fair and square, and he deserved the victory that night. But it taught me a good lesson, and I don't want it to happen again." On His Jiu-Jitsu Display Against Dan Hardy: "I had some great opportunities, and I made a stupid mistake, and I couldn't seal the deal. I did add some great highlights that people don't even acknowledge," St-Pierre said. "At the end of the third round, for example, the best grappling highlight of my whole career was in (my fight with) Dan Hardy. That was a beautiful display of jiu-jitsu," St-Pierre said. "People don't even know this because they don't have the knowledge to appreciate what happened. Some do, but a lot of people did not acknowledge what happened." On Others Getting A Pass: "I watched a fight the another day when (Ronaldo) 'Jacare' (Souza) fought Joey Villasenor," St-Pierre said. "The fight was on the floor almost the entire fight, and [Jacare] couldn't seal the deal, and Jacare is known as the best jiu-jitsu guy on the planet, almost. They don't blame him, but they blame me." On How He Fights: "When I'm standing up, I hit the guy, (and) I pick my angle, and I'm smart," he said. "I'm not afraid to say it: I'm not a brawler, and I'm not a coward. I'm not going to trade punch one-for-one with a guy. I'm going to hit the guy and not get hit. That's a smart way to fight. I'm not going to give names, but if I would tell you names, you would know who's a brawler (and) who's not and who now has a problem with his career because he got hit too much," St-Pierre said. "They can't take a punch anymore."
REED DOESN'T Disagree w/Anything GSP has Said, but he'd have Been Better Off NOT Saying Anything @ All, Honestly...The FACT is, your Stereotypical MMA Fan is BLOODTHIRSTY & has Been TURNED OFF By GSP's Last Several Performances... This Latest Revelation Does NATHAN to Make Those Fans Want to Go OUT of their Way to Spend PPV Dollars on him... REED:hammert:
Combat sports is pretty harsh. Once you reach the highest level on the sport like GSP has, you will have as many detractors as you will supporters. Especially since the age of message boards. People will say anything get a rise out of others, even if it means bashing someone that really doesn't deserve
:crafty: Actually both guys came to our radio station and I saw them. They both are cool. To ME, GSP does havea bit of an effeminate demeanor. Don't get me wrong, he'd still beat me up.
everyone not gawking at GSP body during his fights knew he was playing it safe. Credit to GSP for admiting it. He's far more honest than most of his fans
What's funny is that the majority of MMA fighters would love to 'play it safe' like GSP, but they just don't have the skill. Personally, if I'm a boxing, BJJ, MMA, or Wrestling participant and I can dominate every round yet play if safe, I'm doing it. It makes for a long career and a healthy post-career life.
Exactly. You do what you need to do to win, that's the name of the game in ANY combat sport. To take punishment you don't have to take is just stupid.
That SOUNDS Good, but How Many Times have Guys like Roy & Floyd (AND the Sport of Boxing ITSELF) Been CRITICIZED for Doing JUST ENOUGH to Win???...Some would Tell U that's the Type of Behavior that DROVE Fans from Boxing to MMA in the 1st Place.... REED:hammert:
True, but not me. One of my favorite boxers of all time is Pernell Whitaker. I wasn't DRIVEN from boxing to MMA either. I still watch boxing religiously. I just like MMA as well. But let's be honest, it's a primitive, blood lust that draws men to combat sports in the first place. So while I respect GSP for what he can do while playing it safe and admit I would do the same, I would far prefer to see him in a blood and guts brawl where he throws caution to the wind. We respect skill and defensive prowess, but love bloody battles.
agREED 100%... REED just Wonders How Many MMA Fans R SOPHISTICATED Enough to Appreciate a "Safety 1st" Guy that's UPFRONT about it...Moreso, GSP & Silva R Arguably THE MOST Marketable Guys in UFC, yet it's Almost to the Point where Fans R Expecting "Boring" Fights from them... REED:mj:
I agree totally.This is why I appreciate fighters like Shogun, Fedor, Aldo and Rampage. They all have the skill to play it safe and win, but prefer to go out there and take risks to make the fight enertaining.
Probably... If So, @ WHAT Point Does Dana White Stop INSISTING on Blood & Guts Type of Performances from his Guys???....When 2 ACCOMPLISHED MMAists Step in the Cage, 1 Should B GOOD Enough to PREVENT the Other from Dominating him in "Boring", 1-Sided Fashion... As a Fan of Roy Jones, it IRKED REED that Fans & Media Started Questioning Roy's COMPETITION, Because of his Dominance...Instead of APPRECIATING his Talent, they BITCHED about the EASE of his Wins Instead... REED Sees the Same Shit Happening w/GSP & Silva... REED:hammert:
Many fans have unrealistic expectations. I can't count how many times I have seen Shertards say stuff like "Omfg! Fedor is slipping! Rogers bloodied his nose and hit him 3 times on the ground!". Or " Omfg! Arlovski was tooling him standing before he KTFO! He's shot!". Like you are supposed to take 0 damage in a fight or something. Especially with a balls to the wall style like Fedor. Some of these guys expect flawless performances sometimes and want them exciting + action packed at the same time. Makes no sense to me.
Domination is boring. I remember getting pissed at Larry Merchant for insisting Floyd should have gone for the stoppage against Baldomir. Why? Baldomir couldn't touch him, hurt him or even stand on his shadow. Why risk anything to win BETTER? Personally I admire domination at the top level. The UFC continues to put the top guys at 170 pounds in front of GSP, and he makes them look below average. That is impressive domination. The only time you'll hear me whine about a guy playing it safe is when they taunt and talk trash like Silva did against Maia. If he wants to pitch a shutout and leave without a scratch then fine, but don't taunt Maia like he's not trying.
Exactly... When U Wipe Your Ass w/a Guy for 5 Rounds, U're "Boring"...When a Guy Actually CHALLENGES U a Bit, U're SHOT or "Exposed" (Even if U Eventually STOP him Early).... REED:shit:
playing it safe is all good when you're facing an opponent who has the tools to challenge you. I could live, for example, with his boring display vs Alvez who, even thought was very outgunned, could turned it around with one good shot. But against guy's like Hardy or Penn ( yes I know most of you thought it was a 50-50 fight going in but I alway's knew the much smaller Penn had no chance and was even ridiculised for it on this very site ), GSP should put on a show. But he still fought in the same safety first boring manner even thought they posed no threat. But just as Floyd suceed in fooling the boxing public, the UFC is very good at manipulating the masses, and, surprisingly to me, GSP is a draw for whatever reason. So more power to him if he's satsified in winning this way.
MMA is not the sweet science. I'm not being unreasonable when I say that most MMA fans tune in to watch the stand up part of the sport. That being said, I do appreciate a good grappling battle if they are constantly moving. It's the lack of action spurts in both sports that hurt it. I'd rather watch a boring boxing match over a boring MMA match any day of the week. That's not a direct jab at MMA though because punching is the most exciting part of any fight for mostly everyone. I think the UFC in particular has done extremely well in conditioning their audience to the finer points of MMA. They literally had to come up with terms for things like ground and pound as they were added to the game. Joe Rogan actually impresses me as a color commentator, though he and Mike Goldberg make every single fighter seem like Prime Ali. As for Anderson and GSP, the competiton in their division are so far below them that it's not even compelling to order the matchup first off, then their styles really don't help matters either. It's a double whammy.
To me it's a matter of how safe they played it. I'd say playing it safe like GSP vs Hardy isn't a big deal, he was still offensive, it's not like he's fighting like Anderson Silva did against Maia. THAT was a disgraceful level of safety. It's not like I enjoy every GSP fight or Mayweather fight, some are boring, doesn't mean I blame them for doing it, I would too if I were in their shoes and had the skills to allow me to fight in that way.
