UFC 158 co & main event results *spoilers*

Hendricks v Condit:

How this fight did not end in a KO I will never know, both men threw with reckless abandon (as Joe Rogan liked to say during the fight) but neither managing to knock the other out. Hendrick dominated the wrestling and managed to get Condit to the ground multiple times in all 3 rounds. However, it was Condit who was more active on his back and delivered some good offense as well as getting back up to the feet every time. Hendricks apparently broke his left hand, which is why his G&P was not really working for him. Hendricks has really explosive speed, which Rogan attributed to his wrestling career and he managed to close the distance on Condit and negate his reach advantage. Condit weathered the storm early from Hendricks in round 1 and grew into the fight throwing his customary flying knees and roundhouse kicks. Overall I actually thought Condit was the more proactive fighter on the feet & ground but Hendricks picked up the UD most probably due to his takedowns, which Condit really didn't have an answer for. Condit tried to set up a kimura several times on the ground but never managed to truly get a hold of it, which was frustrating because I think a better Jiu-Jitsu fighter would have been able to capitalize. While this fight was full of fireworks it did frustrate me that wrestling seems to count for so much in MMA. Granted Condit should have worked harder on stuffing the takedowns and perfecting his sprawl but Hendricks never made the most of his top control on the ground. From that perspective I think Condit could have won it, he was more active while on the ground and continued to press the fight on the feet, especially in rounds 2 and 3. This is a huge blow for Condit's title aspirations and afterwards Hendrick's called out GSP for his title shot.

GSP v Diaz:

GSP absolutely dominated Diaz for rounds 1 & 2 with superior wrestling and G&P. Diaz tried to roll out of GSP's G&P but GSP tenaciously stayed with Diaz with a strong wrestling grip to maintain back control. The third round was a little more even with Diaz managing to connect on the feet with some jabs but GSP employed his jab and superman punch effectively also. Rounds 4 & 5 Diaz was very lethargic, content to walk around the Octagon with his hands down while GSP pursued him. Diaz did have more success at stuffing GSP's takedowns, possibly a sign that GSP was fatigued but nevertheless GSP still got Diaz to the ground in every round. Diaz had a very negative tactic whereby he would walk on his hands and feet up to the cage in order to escape preventing GSP from kicking or kneeing him in the head. I really didn't enjoy Diaz's tactics, which just seemed to spoil the fight. By round 4 the commentators were bewildered as to why Diaz didn't show more urgency as he was by now way behind GSP on the scorecards. GSP finished the fight strong was some good G&P before the final buzzer sounded. Another 5 round victory for GSP.

This fight really begs the question - does GSP possess KO power anymore? He connected nicely with some stiff jabs and a couple of superman punches but didn't throw wildly for fear of the counterpunches. Is it that GSP is too technical? Or is it just not in his nature? In the end, even against Diaz we didn't see that much aggression from GSP. It was still a very controlled, disciplined performance. GSP is a fantastic martial artist but he either doesn't have the raw power or the nature to finish fights anymore. Should he fight Hendricks next it will be interesting to see how that fight goes. Hendricks like GSP can cover ground quickly with his bursts of speed and the two are excellent wrestlers. GSP won't want to keep the fight standing against Hendricks because he knows Hendricks genuinely has KO power and Hendricks won't want the fight to go to ground and suffer GSP's Jiu-Jitsu. It will come down to who's the better wrestler.

Good card from what I saw, the 3 ww fights, Condit vs Hendricks the best for me, just non stop action that surprisingly didn't end in a ko. I thought Condit was getting to Hendricks in the 3rd but I feel Hendricks deserved the win, he won the 1st for me and throughout the fight seemed to control the pace & push the action. A pity that it wasnt a 5 round fight as I think Condit would've won ko or points. No surprise though that in a close fight Hendricks got the nod, I don;t think Dana would've put Condit straight back in against GSP. I look forward to GSP vs Hendricks.

I have to say I was surprised how GSP dominated the 1st 2 rounds, Diaz appeared to have no answer & was taken down at will but to be fair he defended himself reasonably well GSP didn't inflict much damage. Round 3 I thought was Diaz's best round, as you say he began to defend the take downs & land some punches. To be honest I felt that going into the 4th GSP was looking tired he didn't have the same intensity but luckily Diaz didn't press himself, bit of a strange tactic really as was going walkabout. I think Diaz tactic was good walking on his hands & feet to the cage, do you really expect a guy to take kicks & knees to the head/face?

With regards to GSP maybe not having raw power or not the finishing nature I thinks its a bit of both, he's a fantastic martial artist & athlete but he fights technically to win he doesn't take risks the way he fought didn't really surprise me nor that he won on points.

well it surprised me a little the hands walking strategy just because Diaz was so frustrated by Condit's tactics when they fought and many people booed Condit for having "negative" tactics. But it was definitely smart.

I was actually worried for GSP at the end of the 3rd round, I think if Diaz had pressed the action more in the 4th he could have caused GSP some problems. GSP was knocked down by Condit in their unification fight. But GSP managed to control the pace and the range very well, as Diaz conceded after the fight, he was knocked back by the superman punches and just couldn't get his boxing working for him. GSP is such a class fighter.

I too look forward to the GSP/Hendricks fight, should be a good contest for both men. GSP is the more rounded fighter but could he handle Hendricks' pressure and aggression? It will be interesting to see how much respect Hendricks gives GSP in the fight.

I was expecting more from the main event to be honest. With all the build up and supposed animosity between the two, I felt the fight didn't live upto it.

I don't know how Diaz can think walking round with your hands down taunting can win a title. He looked to have given up after 2 rounds.
GSP just cannot or will not finish anymore. This was the perfect fight to really put a beating on someone and he still wouldn't do it.

Condit v Hendricks stole the show, and I also thought Condit just shaded it.

Hendricks and Condit stole the show in one respect, but for me GSP's technique is just amazing to watch. The most impressive thing about Hendricks for me was how he closed the distance and took away Condit's reach advantage. But once he broke his hand his game was effected. Condit was able to press the action more but again there was a lot of head hunting and not too much intelligent fighting. GSP may not finish fights anymore but he is so clinical and technical. I remember when he fought Koscheck for the second time and broke Koscheck's orbital bone in the first round. GSP's jab is so good. His BJJ against Dan Hardy was almost perfect as well, an opponent with a lesser pain thresh hold probably would have tapped. Although I agree that Diaz is overrated, he is a BJJ black belt and a good boxer, so GSP had to fight smart.

talkingpoint wrote:Hendricks and Condit stole the show in one respect, but for me GSP's technique is just amazing to watch. The most impressive thing about Hendricks for me was how he closed the distance and took away Condit's reach advantage. But once he broke his hand his game was effected. Condit was able to press the action more but again there was a lot of head hunting and not too much intelligent fighting. GSP may not finish fights anymore but he is so clinical and technical. I remember when he fought Koscheck for the second time and broke Koscheck's orbital bone in the first round. GSP's jab is so good. His BJJ against Dan Hardy was almost perfect as well, an opponent with a lesser pain thresh hold probably would have tapped. Although I agree that Diaz is overrated, he is a BJJ black belt and a good boxer, so GSP had to fight smart.

And that is GSP's strong point & why he is on a long winning streak. A fighter must fight to his strengths, and I know we've disagreed on this & Dana's comments, but winning is what its all about, no point being an exciting loser. People are always going to watch GSP because he is a dominant champ & future UFC hall of famer and if the next big name can beat him.

sohotnot wrote:

And that is GSP's strong point & why he is on a long winning streak. A fighter must fight to his strengths, and I know we've disagreed on this & Dana's comments, but winning is what its all about, no point being an exciting loser. People are always going to watch GSP because he is a dominant champ & future UFC hall of famer and if the next big name can beat him.

true.

While I would normally defend GSP with all the points that have already been brought up, I expected a little different for this fight. If you personally ask to fight someone and state that he will get the worst beat down of his life, you have to back it up in the octagon, and for me GSP didn't. It was his usual performance, which is effective and good to watch, but like I said, I expected more.

I think Diaz can count himself lucky that he got 2 title shots because he is all mouth and no action.

nasisillmatic wrote:While I would normally defend GSP with all the points that have already been brought up, I expected a little different for this fight. If you personally ask to fight someone and state that he will get the worst beat down of his life, you have to back it up in the octagon, and for me GSP didn't. It was his usual performance, which is effective and good to watch, but like I said, I expected more.

I think Diaz can count himself lucky that he got 2 title shots because he is all mouth and no action.

With GSP unfortunately we cant expect more. Fair enough he asked for the fight, aside from Hendricks & possibly Macdonald there isn't a bigger name to fight at WW at the moment, Diaz equals money, he's got a lot of 'fanboys' who love his bad boy persona & the fact he's got a black belt in BJJ from Ceasar Gracie. GSP really shouldn't make comments he isn't going to back up but maybe he was just selling the fight but he was pretty dominant in his performance although I think the scores were a little wide.

you could tell from the G&P tactics that GSP wanted to punish Diaz but Diaz's BJJ was too good for him to get the TKO. GSP stayed with him everytime he tried to escape and he had to switch sides as Diaz was constantly trying to set up a kimura. GSP showed good tactical awareness not to let himself get caught in the submission but he just couldn't pin Diaz down long enough.

I had hoped to see a more aggressive GSP but I was still impressed by how dominant the first two rounds were. GSP is a true gentleman warrior and even though he said he was going to give Diaz a beating, he was gracious and humble in victory. GSP knows his limitations and fights to his strengths. Hendricks will be a completely different prospect.

Re: GSP vs Diaz - Pretty much as I thought i.e. GSP by UD.

I was disapointed when Diaz got lazy in the 4th and 5th rounds when he chose not to throw punches. He was clearly losing and needing the KO and needed to go for broke but didn't?

I though Hendricks won R1 and 2 and with it the fight and his CV of opponanats fought and won clearly warrant a GSP title shot.

Condit done well and would have favoured him had it been a 5 round fight but definately gave Hendricks the first 2 rounds.

Ellenberger gave an impressive account of himslef by stopping Marquart in just a few minutes. He like Hendricks has brutal power.

In regards to the GSP/Hendricks fight i'm very much looking forward to it. I'd still favour GSP (as I would against virtually anyone) but Hendricks does have decent wrestling himself and has crazy power.

Whilst his reckless abandon style will suit GSP for the most part, he does pose a real risk of connecting with his left and stopping the fight at any moment.

absolutely, he's a dangerous opponent for that reason and GSP will know this.