Keep that day in mind! 2 great wrestlers about to clash it out to win the prestige and honour of being called the best. Excellent training from both camps and one is even considering this to be his last match. Thats right. ME! All about me!! Oh, you folk are more interested in the GSP vs Hendricks UFC 167 fight? I guess thats a better fight....yeah..mines only a club match. http://www.fightersonlymag.com/content/news/20122-watch-ufc-167-extended-preview
Let us know how you get on! I did freestyle in Birmingham, then Greco when I moved abroad. Love the stuff! Sadly, there's no decent clubs in my town for adults. I really miss the training.
Anyhow GSP vs Hendricks Who you guys got? I may actually put money on Hendricks, he's stocky, great wrestling and of course mad power in both hands. GSP is a better overall athlete and excels in all areas..but he has been guilty of keeping his chin and head up at the wrong times.
This is definitely one of those toss up situations. I certainly wouldn't be surprised if Hendricks wins but I'm going to have to go with GSP if it gets out of the second round. If anyone can work out how to deal with his Hendricks' left hand then its GSP and Greg Jackson. Plus I personally had Condit winning against Hendricks and if he can do it then I believe GSP can. The two obvious problems with that is I'm pretty sure hendricks broke his hand in that fight, and Condit still took a few power shots in the first round. Condit's chin seems to be the best at WW and its clearly better than GSP's. Although I don't think GSP has a glass jaw either and he showed against Condit he learnt from the Serra fight what to do when he gets rocked, and Condit has a habit of getting hit far more than St-Pierre does. The only big question I have is I haven't seen Hendricks' earlier fights before he started KOing people in the first few seconds so how good is his defensive wrestling? Everyone's touting this as a power puncher with the wrestling to beat GSP but I have heard that before. Koscheck swings to mind. I know he had a great college wrestling career and is apparently a good offensive wrestler in mma, although the only fight I've seen him use it is against Condit who has quite bad tdd, so I'm unsure whether the hype about him being the one to stuff GSP's shot is completely true. On top of that if there have been fights where he's shown he can defend takedowns in mma very well, were they against a opponent who times and chains them together in the same way GSP does? Sooo I think Hendricks could certainly knock GSP out, but I'm not completely sold on the idea that he poses as much of a threat as everyone says he does when you take away that beast of a left hand.
^Hendricks was a champion NCAA division 1 wrestler. But since he started KOing people he started sticking to his stand up. Wrestling base turned striker/
Which doesn't really mean much. We've seen great college wrestlers become mediocre mma ones. And that just brings me right bakc to Koscheck again: NCAA Div 1 wrestler, very good mma wrestler, I remember him taking GSP down but I also remember GSP taking him down more in the first fight and then mutilating his face in the second one. I haven't seen the fight myself yet but from what I've read most people think he beat Hendricks as well.
Hendricks has two kinds of fights against top shelf opposition, first round KO wins and close decisions where he fades in the third. His offence isn't varied enough to catch St Pierre early and he'll spend the second half of the fight on his back getting short elbowed to a dec. loss.
Yet he fought him to a controversial win. My point though was that Hendricks being an NCAA champion doesn't satisfactorily answer my question about how his defensive wrestling is in mma. What is Hendricks' striking skill by the way? From what I've seen he packs an anvil in his left and is incredibly good at closing the distance with it. Its a dangerous weapon but it seems to be the only one he has. Again, Condit outstruck him once he got out of the danger of the first round haymaker flurries and, while I think Condit might be a better pure striker than GSP, if he can do it then St-Pierre certainly can. Obviously there's still the big chance Hendricks will level him but I don't think his striking skill is huge. If he connects with his left he puts you to sleep. If you can avoid that (and if anyone can at WW then its likely to be GSP) what other striking tools does Hendricks have?
Hendricks has a punchers chance, a very good puncher at that. I expect GSP to dominate the ground, and have a couple of neat tricks to deal with an aggressive wrestler. If it finishes in the first two rounds Hendricks by KO if it goes further I see a potential submission victory by Georges in 3/4 or just a nice points win based on ground control.
Hendricks takes this inside two or he doesn't take it at all - my call is GSP decision because I don't see Hendricks putting him out early on
GSP has had this down to an exact science for some time. Equal measures, carefully prescribed and planned well in advance. The plan trained to perfection vis-à-vis Greg Jackson and brought to fruition with perfect diet, Olympic trainers and sparring partners at his disposal. Probably one of the most analytical fighters ever - certainly in the UFC. He knows how to stay out of the way of Hendricks' hand, if anyone does. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- {bleedin' ell, you could just read Southpaw's post, then} Also, as Mattt says, he's probably a couple of nifty little tricks somewhere. I only see him loosing if he doesn't want it anymore - gets tired of doing it.
Here's a question: How do you see the first Silva/Weidman going ( at the time leading up )? How about the rematch?
GSP is too smart to let Hendricks get that punchers chance. And a predictable one strike punchers chance at that. No one beats GSP in MMA wrestling. They always talk up GSP fights like the opponent has a chance, and it is never even close. GSP all the way.
I has a couple questions. 1. If Hendricks does beat GSP do you think St-Pierre retires? Or that could be the thing to light a fire under his butt again I suppose. 2. Does anyone think that Hendricks wins the rematch that will obviously happen if GSP loses?
