Next weekend the mixed martial arts community is going to get a main event that mainstream fans have wanted to see for a long time. At UFC 158 Nick Diaz will return from suspension to face UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre. While Nick Diaz isn’t considered the number one contender to George’s title, he does create an interesting matchup in some respects. Many people have formulated ideas of how this bout will go, and for a visual representation, just look back to a few months to another main event bout where a champion faced and defeated a Diaz brother without much danger.
Last December at UFC on Fox 5, Benson Henderson defeated Nate Diaz in a five round decision. For 25 minutes Henderson was able to push Diaz around the cage, negate his pressure boxing, and control him with wrestling while staying out of dangerous positions when it came to grappling. In looking at this fight, it is very easy to see how Henderson’s performance could mirror that of the UFC 158 main event.
After the fight, St. Pierre publicly thanked Henderson for helping him create a game plan to defeat the former Strikeforce champion. During the Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale, “Rush” made the following statement to the UFC Lightweight Champion:
“I watched very carefully your fight against Nate Diaz. I’m going to try to use some of the stuff you have done in the fight to win over Nick Diaz, as well. I’m going to learn from what you did and try to apply it in my game plan. Thanks for showing me the blueprint.”
Henderson and St. Pierre do have similar fight styles, as they both rely on wrestling to control fight positioning, but are also able to score while on the feet. St. Pierre is considered one of the best wrestlers in the sport and has shown the ability to take down any opponent almost at will. Diaz, who is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Cesar Gracie, is known for high level mat work, however he has consistently struggled against wrestlers who can control him on the mat. Diaz does use a very active boxing style that can potentially be a problem for St. Pierre, but if GSP uses some of the same techniques that Henderson employed against Nate, he has the ability to avoid those situations as well.
Benson Henderson was able to neutralize the strengths of Nate Diaz when they fought, and since he and his brother have similar styles, St. Pierre can use the same game plan and put this fight out of reach for the Stockton native. It might not end up being the most entertaining or violent victory, but when you’re a world champion, the smoothest path to victory is very often the best one.
UFC 158: St. Pierre vs. Diaz is due to take place on March 16, 2013 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
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"that MAINSTREAM fans have wanted to see for a long time."
That was an appropriate to mention detail
I appreciated that