UFC
UFC 124 RESULTS: Georges St. Pierre dominates Josh Koscheck in brilliant striking display in Montreal to retain Welterweight Championship
Dec 12, 2010 - 10:22:59 AM UFC 124 RESULTS: Georges St. Pierre dominates Josh Koscheck in brilliant striking display in Montreal to retain Welterweight Championship

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Georges St. Pierre once again proved his dominance over the welterweight division on Saturday night in Montreal, picking Josh Koscheck apart through five rounds to earn a unanimous decision, retaining his Welterweight Championship bout.

St. Pierre employed liberal use of the jab throughout the fight, constantly finding his target and damaging the right side of Koscheck's face. It began from the outset of the fight, as St. Pierre's jabs and leg kicks kept Koscheck on the outside.

Koscheck's right eye began to badly swell in the second round, and St. Pierre continued to connect on strikes to the eye, causing it to further swell. The fight was nearly stopped by the cageside doctor after the third round because of the damage to the eye, but a resilient and very tough Koscheck gutted it out and continued in the fight.

But he was simply unable to get any offense going in the fight. He attempted to engage throughout, but was beaten to the punch, countered or swung aside at every turn.

The fight was contested on the feet for the most part due to Koscheck's excellent takedown defense. St. Pierre tried to mix in takedowns with his strikes in most of the rounds, but was held off and forced to continue working in the exchanges.

But that worked fine for the Champion, as his activity picked up in the later rounds. With Koscheck's eye swelling shut, St. Pierre added in hooks and kicks to Koscheck's right side that found their mark more often than not.

After 25 minutes of this beating, Koscheck and St. Pierre squashed the partially manufactured beef from their time on the Ultimate Fighter. Koscheck freely admits a lot of his talking heading into the event was to hype up the fight, and the two shared a sportsmanlike moment after the bout. St. Pierre then implored the crowd to give Koscheck respect for coming into his back yard for this fight and for being the tough challenger that he was.

The question now moves to what is next for St. Pierre. Although Jake Shields has been promised a title shot, St. Pierre has now cleared out just about every challenge he could face in the division, and has done so in dominating and one sided fashion. That said, the next fight for St. Pierre is likely to take place on April 30 in Toronto, and whether it's the bout with Jake Shields or a move up to middleweight, St. Pierre once again proved he deserves his spot as one of the best fighters in the world.

Penick's Analysis: Although there was some disappointment in the fact that GSP couldn't finish this fight, disappointment he himself shared, it just shows how tough of a fighter Koscheck is. St. Pierre had him in some very bad spots in this fight. He lit him up with combinations in every round, he continued to land punches and kicks throughout the fight, and as soon as he got a takedown on Koscheck he was looking to improve his position for a chance to finish. This was a masterful performance from the best fighter on the planet, and I just don't know who, if anyone, stands a chance of beating him right now.