Injury has befallen GSP once again, this time very serious. And just like that, the UFC’s welterweight division became very interesting. In news released through a Twitter post by Dana White early Wednesday morning, Georges St. Pierre has suffered a knee injury that will keep him on the shelf for nearly ten months. However, instead of putting the division on hold until the champion’s return, UFC matchmakers have created an interim title that will be carried by the winner of a freshly-booked fight between Carlos Condit and Nick Diaz at UFC 143.
So many questions arise out of this development. Will GSP be able to recover from such a serious injury? Who is the favorite between Condit and Diaz? Will there be a title defense between UFC 143 and St. Pierre’s return, and if so, who will receive the title shot? What does this mean for former contenders, such as Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck and Thiago Alves? Each of these questions is very interesting in its own right.
In sports across the board, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries have been known to completely disrupt the career of many professional athletes. The effects of such an injury have to be even more devastating to an athlete like St. Pierre, who is known for explosive takedowns and techniques. Although this news is still fresh in the MMA world, one can’t help but look ahead, and wonder if GSP will be the same fighter once he returns from the surgery and long layoff; having last competed in March of this year, he will have missed nearly two years of active competition. Having said that, as the signature star of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, there are sure to be many different sports injury specialists available to the Canadian, and he will surely receive the best treatment possible, so that he can come back at the same level we’ve come to expect. However, until he next competes, we won’t know for sure.
As for the UFC 143 main event, it will be extremely difficult to pick a winner between Condit and Diaz. The only certainty is that both of these fighters will not back down, and will exchange a high volume of strikes. Comparing the two opponents, Diaz is the better striker and grappler, who should have the advantage in either one of those areas. Condit does have better takedowns than Diaz, but being on the ground would place him in a dangerous position. The biggest attribute in Condit’s favor is the fact that he is willing to throw caution to the wind when competing. We all witnessed the flying knee that caught and shocked Dong Hyun Kim into his first defeat, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he has more tricks like that up his sleeve.
And once the dust from this bout settles, where will the UFC go from there? Looking at the list of top welterweights at this time, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Jake Ellenberger named as the number one contender if he can get past Diego Sanchez in February. “The Juggernaut” has been on a tear in recent history, plus he has some history with Condit after suffering a split decision loss to him in 2009. If Condit can secure the interim title, the backstory of the rematch could make the fight more attractive and marketable. Ellenberger’s knockout victory over Diaz’ teammate Jake Shields could provide a subplot if the Stockton native ends up with the belt. Furthermore, Nick Diaz still remains untested against strong wrestlers, and Ellenberger has that working in his favor.
After Ellenberger the list becomes quite muddled. Josh Koscheck, who was supposed to fight Condit on the 143 card, is now without an opponent for the event. It would be nice to see the UFC tap a fighter such as Mike Pierce, who is 5-2 in the UFC and in need of a win over a top opponent to be considered an up and comer in the division. Jon Fitch, who has been in career purgatory since his defeat to St. Pierre, is facing Johny Hendricks at UFC 141. Even if he is victorious, I doubt he will be any closer to a second title shot, even though a new champion will be sitting atop the 170-pound weight class. The UFC doesn’t seem enamored with him or his style, and despite win after win after win at welterweight, he remains on the outside, looking in at the contenders “mix.”
The injury to St. Pierre has created shockwaves that will continue to shake up the welterweight division throughout 2012. We have all grown accustomed to the same man standing at the top of the division, and now we’ll see a number of fighters sprinting to that vacated spot, each one hoping that he will be the one to welcome the champion back, once he is capable of returning.
