At UFC 143 the mixed martial arts community crowned the first UFC welterweight titleholder not named Georges St. Pierre in nearly five years when Carlos Condit was able to defeat Nick Diaz in a five-round battle for the interim title. “The Natural Born Killer” played the ultimate spoiler when his hand was raised, as he was overlooked by many fighters, fans, and analysts. However, instead of being cheered for winning the bout, he has been accosted by a mounting number of detractors, which does a serious injustice to the career Condit has developed.
Peruse any of the popular mixed martial arts forums, or the Twitter timelines of fans, fighters, and members of the MMA media, and you will still see claims that Condit has become a boring fighter. Individuals flex their internet muscles and call him a “point scorer,” or someone who was afraid to engage as he fought for the interim title. Completely ignoring the fact that FightMetric’s stats have Condit outlanding Diaz by 42 strikes (159-117), these people look down on him like he stole the victory. Disagreeing with the outcome of the judges’ decision is one thing, but the outright disrespect that has followed Condit around since Saturday is an all new low.
The fact is Carlos Condit did what he had to do in order to win. Mixed martial arts is a sport, and just as athletes in other arenas do what is necessary to walk away with the “W”, so did Condit. Going into this bout he had two options: 1. Create a gameplan that maximized his abilities while taking away from Diaz’s well-known fighting style; or 2. Play into Diaz’s fighting style in hopes of knocking him out en route to an exciting finish. For a fighter who was receiving his first ever shot at UFC welterweight gold, why are so people trying to punish him for picking the first choice?
There’s no doubt that the GSP-Diaz fight that would have followed could have been the biggest fight of the year. The UFC would have raked in from PPV, live gate, and sponsorship revenue, and received a ton of mainstream media coverage if the “golden boy” that is St. Pierre was matched against the trash-talking Stockton native. But that isn’t Condit’s concern. His job is to walk into that Octagon and come out the winner in any fashion that he can. Yes, he backed away and used angles to attack Diaz for the majority of the fight. But that is a stark contrast to a fighter “running away” from his opponent, especially when he outstrikes the man he’s facing. This was a smart strategy for Condit, and Diaz made a critical mistake by not changing things up.
What’s worse is that Condit may forever be painted as a fighter that “avoids” engaging his opponents and fights to score points. That may be the most incorrect characterization of an athlete that I’ve ever heard. With 28 wins to his record, this is only the second time he has be awarded a win by the judges. Think about that. Twenty-six other fighters have either been knocked out or submitted by Condit. You would be hard pressed to find a fighter who “runs away” with such a track record. (Pun intended.) Have people forgotten about how he dispatched both Dan Hardy and Dong Hyun Kim in highlight reel fashion? Have we forgotten about the fight against Rory MacDonald in which he came from behind with seven seconds left to finish the fight? How about when he had to come from behind against the tough Jake Ellenberger? The list goes on and on with examples of how Condit is exactly the opposite of what so many people are trying to make him out to be, yet he is being portrayed that way because he implemented the strategy and game plan that was necessary to win the biggest fight of his career.
The UFC welterweight division is wide open right now, and the opportunity is there for one man to seize control of everything, solidifying his legacy as a competitor and bank account as a prizefighter at the same time. This past Saturday night, “The Natural Born Killer” did exactly what any of us would have done in the same situation: he fought to win.
Click here to rate all the fights from UFC 143.
Since 2008 Carlos Condit's average fight rating is 4.04 stars over 7 fights. (4.09 not counting this last fight, and 4.16 over 5 fights if you also don't count his fight with Kim which he finished in less than a minute.)
Meanwhile Nick Diaz's average fight rating is 3.68 stars over 12 fights.
George St. Pierre's average fight rating is 3.58 stars over 7 fights.
Nick Diaz has been the busier fighter, and definitely very exciting relative to most fighters, but not as exciting as he has been, Condit still has him beat. Nick averages 4.03 stars if you only include his 7 most exciting fights.
The criticism is reminiscent of pro golfers who are criticized for laying up instead of going for the green when they are ahead. They forget the object of the sport is to win.
I fid it infuriating when people criticize intelligent fighters. Condit knew that Nick's game plan was to get him the corner and unload..which is why he wouldn't allow him to do it. THis frustrated Nick. Boo friggin' Hoo! The fact that Condit didn't give him the fight he was expecting, means that Condit fought exactly the way he should have.
People seem to forget WHY MMA was created in the first place! The idea was to pit different fighting styles against eachother to see who would be left standing..would Judo beat boxing? would Wrestling beat Karate?
Nowadays, all people want to see is 2 guys throwing punches until one falls down and can't get back up..that's called Boxing. The fact that they insult GSP for his wrestling or Condit for his Stick and Move game last weekend, is ridiculous.
Nick needs to grow up