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UFC WEIGH-IN NOTES AND QUOTES

By Mike Johnson on 11/16/2012 6:05 PM

UFC 154 WEIGH-IN ON FUEL TV Show Quotes – 11/16/12

 

Georges St-Pierre: “I missed this a lot. It’s good to be back.”

Condit: “I’m going to finish him. I’m going to finish Georges.”

 

LOS ANGELES, CA – The following quotes are from today’s UFC 154 WEIGH-IN ON FUEL TV for UFC 154: ST-PIERRE VS. CONDIT. The show was hosted by Karyn Bryant, with UFC Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz and UFC TONIGHT’s Kenny Florian offering analysis. Two-time MMA Journalist of the Year Ariel Helwani conducted fighter interviews on-site in Montreal.

 

UFC 154 WEIGH-IN ON FUEL TV Reporter Ariel Helwani asks Georges St-Pierre about looking happy at weigh-ins: “I’m happy. I missed this a lot. It’s good to be back.”

 

GSP on whether he’s feeling nervous at the weigh-ins: “I’m always nervous. It’s good to be nervous. It is a bad thing if you are not nervous.”

 

GSP on what he’s going to do between now and the fight: “My mind is kind of messed up right now. I’m very dehydrated. I’m going to go eat and drink and recuperate. I’ll show up at my best tomorrow. That’s all I need to do.”

 

Helwani asks Carlos Condit on his prediction for the fight: “I’m going to finish him. I’m going to finish Georges.”

 

Carlos Condit on what this fight means to him: “This fight is basically the culmination of a long time training, a lot of hard work. You know, I haven’t only been thinking about fighting Georges for the last year, but I’ve been thinking about fighting Georges my entire career. I am extremely excited to put on a good fight for the Montreal fans.”

 

Condit on what he’s going to do in the fight: “I want to go in and exhibit my skills. I love to fight and want to show off my skills. I’ve changed up my training from a couple of years ago. I’m more diligent about training now. I train year-round, so I don’t have to get back in shape between fights. I’m already in shape.”

 

Condit on if he’s nervous before the fight: “I’m not as nervous as I thought I’d be.”

 

Condit on what he’s doing over the next couple hours: “I’m going to eat and drink, relax and keep my head straight.”

 

UFC 154 WEIGH-IN ON FUEL TV Analyst Kenny Florian on seeing GSP back: “I can’t wait to watch this fight. It’s been so long since we’ve seen GSP fight. I think the layoff did him very well. I think he was overtraining, and going through motions with his training before the layoff.”

 

Florian on what sets GSP apart: "When Georges St-Pierre first came on the scene, this was a new kind of athlete. He could really do it all. What really made him impressive was that he was really out-wrestling other wrestlers. That is the kind of guy he is and he has been dominating the division for a long, long time.”

 

UFC 154 WEIGH-IN ON FUEL TV Analyst Dominick Cruz on Carlos Condit: "We really can't forget about Carlos Condit. He has finished almost everyone he has fought. He is probably GSP's toughest guy to date. He is constantly mixing up his strikes, mixing up his techniques and that is what makes him so dangerous. He never throws the same thing twice and he sets up everything he does."

 

Cruz on what GSP is dealing with coming back after the injury: “You know coming from someone who has also had ACL surgery, I see this as a growing experience for GSP. He’s fighting two things. He’s fighting the knee and the confidence from the injury, and he’s also fighting Carlos. So he’s coming back from the layoff and he’s going to be growing from both of these things.”

 

Cruz on what GSP has to do in his fight. “You have to look at Georges St-Pierre’s strengths. He’s good everywhere, but what he does best is he mixes things up and keeps you on your toes. Once he gets you down, he is stuck to you like glue, you cannot get out. He is going to grind on Carlos if he gets on top. This is what he does.”

 

Florian on GSP’s strengths: “The key is the back leg of GSP. That was the one that was injured and where he is going to get his explosive power from. His takedown accuracy is the best in the UFC and then he will change levels on you and he uses that rear leg to push through and drive. He hasn’t been competitively wrestling, but he has been wrestling for the last 11 years and he is really good at it.”

 

Cruz on GSP’s return from an ACL injury: “For GSP it is more the mental battle. It’s believing in your knee, that it can perform, that it won’t snap in the middle of a fight. One thing he does super well is that he strikes underneath the strikes of someone else. He explodes after someone else comes after him. He sets his shots up so well. That timing will really help the stress off his knee.”

 

Florian on if Anderson Silva is in the audience will it affect GSP: “It might. It’s a lead up to that potential fight, knowing the biggest fight of his career is still ahead of him. He knows he has to get past this one. But that might be on his mind right now.”

 

Cruz on if Anderson Silva will distract GSP in the fight: “As a champ, there’s always somebody else who you’ll face after this fight. You have to get past it. He has to focus and say ‘I have to be focused on Carlos Condit and beat him.’”

 

Florian on what Condit needs to do in the fight: “The best counter to GSP’s takedowns is a knee. Condit will have to use his knees to counter GSP’s takedown attempts.”

 

Cruz on what Condit can do: “If you’re striking, set up the hooks. Condit is always looking for a finish.”

 

Florian’s predictions for GSP vs. Condit: “I am going to go with GSP. I think Condit is one of those rare individuals who aren’t going to try to lose to GSP. He is going to go after him and take it from him, and that makes him dangerous. But, I think GSP is going to get it done. He has too much experience.”

 

Cruz’s predictions for GSP vs. Condit: “I would like to see GSP come out and not have the knee be a worry, considering I have the same injury. But, I want to see Condit take this. He has so much momentum behind him, so confident, so sharp, he believes he is the champion and I think he can go out there and get it done.”

 

Florian on Kampmann’s key to victory: “He is on a three-fight winning streak, but it really should be a lot longer. He got the short end of the stick in a lot of decisions. He is really known as the comeback kid. He has been in some very dramatic fights coming back and getting the win or the finish. He is really a guy that can do it all well. He’s very good wrestling and he can submit you too.”

 

Cruz on Hendricks key to victory: “His key to victory is going to be his wrestling and his left hand. The fact that he is a wrestling champion, you are always worried about the takedowns, but you are going to respect him. He loads up his left hand and you can’t tell if he is going to come in with an uppercut or overhand and that is what is going to get him the knock out.”

 

Cruz on Martin Kampmann: “You can never count out Kampmann. Look for him to use his tight defense and pressure forward to be able to look for knees up the middle and look for the finish. He has a great guillotine and he is always looking to take the guy out.”

 

Helwani on Johny Hendricks: “Johny Hendricks told me yesterday that he will definitely wait for a title shot if he beats Martin Kampmann on Saturday night, even if GSP retains his title and is booked against Anderson Silva next.”

 

Florian’s predictions for Kampmann vs. Hendricks: “I am going to go with Martin Kampmann. He has to be careful with Johny Hendricks though, because he makes you comfortable and then all of a sudden that left hook comes out of nowhere. So you have to watch for his left hand, but I am going to take Kampmann on this one.”

 

Cruz’s predictions for Kampmann vs. Hendricks: “I am going to take Kampmann on this one as well, by a counter-striking clinic. Look for him to use his tight defense and pressure forward to be able to look for knees up the middle and look for the finish. He has a great guillotine and he is always looking to take the guy out. I just think he is going to be able to pick a part Hendricks.”

 

Helwani on Greg Jackson refusing to corner Carlos Condit: “Carlos Condit's longtime trainer Greg Jackson not only refused to corner Carlos Condit because he also trains GSP, but he also told me last night that he will not be watching the fight at home. He said ‘I know it’s just business, but I don’t like it.’”

 

Florian on Francis Carmont: “Francis Carmont is a French fighter who has been training side-by-side with Georges St-Pierre for the last few years. He has pretty much been mimicking everything Georges has been doing. He came in very raw, but right now this is a very tough and technical middleweight.”

 

Cruz on Mark Hominick: "Mark Hominick has several kickboxing championships. He is also using his footwork better than a lot of guys in the featherweight division. Look for him to use his jab to set up all his striking, including left liver shots. His forward pressure and head movement is what is going to win him this fight."

 

Helwani on Patrick Cote: "Patrick Cote and fellow Canadian Nick Ring are sporting mustaches this month in honor of Movember, a charity that encourages men to grow mustaches all month long to raise money for men's health issues."

 

Helwani on Chad Griggs’ training camp: "Well, according to him, it was his rooster that woke him up at every morning at 4:30 AM to begin his day of training and dieting to get him ready for his light heavyweight debut."

 

Florian on Mark Bocek: "Back in late 2006, I had the opportunity to train with Mark Bocek at BJ Penn's training camp. Now for the past year, he has been training with the Tristar training camp. Look for his very good takedowns and top game."

 

Cruz on Sam Stout: "Sam Stout is a seasoned veteran in the division. Look for him to keep a tight defense, pressing forward, using his boxing to set up free flowing combinations and low kicks. Great takedown defense will allow him to keep this fight standing and pressure forward should allow him to break down his opponent throughout the fight. Look for him to be finishing from beginning to end."

 

Helwani on Antonio Carvalho: "He told me that 10 years ago he was signed to a development soccer deal in Portugal. But the honesty and purity of MMA drew him to the sport."

 

For a complete listing of FUEL TV shows, go to: http://www.fuel.tv/schedule. For more information, go to www.fuel.tv/ufc and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/fueltv. Follow @FUELTV on Twitter for all things #UFC154.