FACEBOOK TWITTER RSS APP PODCAST Opinion & Analysis : Bjorn Hansen's Take HANSEN: A critical look at the legacy of Georges "Rush" St. Pierre

Apr 4, 2010 - 11:09:01 AM

By: Bjorn Hansen, MMATorch Columnist

Georges “Rush” St. Pierre has often been mentioned as the prototype for future mixed martial artists. He can do it all. Whether he was karate kicking on his feet, or using his explosiveness to nail takedowns and submissions, it seemed his game knew no boundaries.

The UFC—whose initial name was “War-of-the-Worlds”—started off as a trial of singular styles in the early nineties. You could say that Royce Gracie (son of the Father of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Helio Gracie) represented martial artists before convergence took place.

Soon, it became evident that the fighter that was most able to blend a variety of styles would thrive best. Matt Hughes would signify the next level in the evolution; a dominant wrestler with high-level BJJ.

Then comes GSP; Mixed Martial Artist 2.0. The progression seemed complete. The War of Worlds had transformed into Mixed Martial Arts, and it bore the chiseled face of GSP.

UFC 111 forced me to revisit history. Just how “mixed” was GSP’s game? Dominant? Absolutely. Beautiful? Not even close.

I found his inability to close hard to watch. I was rooting for him, and appreciating the takedowns he performed so effortlessly. Yet, I felt like we were forced into watching a Jonas Brother trying to close on prom night; finishing isn’t everyone’s forte.

The question is, how can you excel at something you don’t do?

As GSP said during the press conference, he taps guys all the time at the gym. But causing a guy to submit when he’s carrying an island of patriotism in his heart requires perfection of technique (and please don’t tell me he has “rubber” shoulders; are his carotid arteries also rubbery?)

GSP also claimed during the press conference that he could stand and trade with Dan Hardy if he wanted to. The question is will his Octagonal-striking match his gym-striking? I’m sure he thought he could submit Hardy before UFC 111, too.

Shining in practice and in the Octagon are two completely different things.

If it continues at this pace, GSP’s skill set will resemble a hologram; a mono-dimensional surface only fictitiously projecting three dimensions. Best Mixed Martial Artist ever? Would Best Mono Martial Artist be any consolation?

Jon Fitch on the other hand, does everything he can. You can’t blame the guy. Jeff Blatnick, the first color commentator for the UFC and former wrestling Olympic gold medalist, has repeated the adage “he does what his body allows him to do” when referring to less-than-athletic-yet-successful wrestlers. This adage holds true for Jon Fitch. The problem is, GSP probably could be, as we once believed him to be, supremely dominant in every aspect of the game.

GSP CAN do everything; but he’s too afraid to push his training beyond wrestling into the Octagon. Meanwhile the game is catching up & passing him over in those unutilized disciplines.

GSP voiced HIS own personal expectations for UFC 111; and to be frank, he fell embarrassingly short.

“Win in a beautiful fashion”? If you were arranging a bachelor party for your best friend, and ordered a stripper resembling Scarlett Johansson, and instead a sloppy Rosie O’Donnell-lookalike walked through the door, would you find that acceptable?

GSP has said with regularity that he is not fighting to be a Champion. He’s fighting for a legacy as the best pound for pound fighter (P4P) on the planet. Any MMA fan with a quarter of a brain will mention Anderson Silva, Fedor Emelianenko and Georges St. Pierre as the trio sitting on top of that P4P list.

Personally I have GSP in third place. For me, there are three key differences that separate Anderson and Fedor from GSP: famous finishes against larger opponents and no humiliating losses in recent memory.

Josh Gross from Sports Illustrated nailed it on the head when he asked at the UFC 111 press conference: how will these performances ultimately affect his legacy? The only highlight from Hardy vs. GSP is a failed submission by GSP.

Picture this: every fight GSP has from now on, presumably all at welterweight, ends up as a five round decision. Now do you think that’ll be enough to pass over either of the other pair? Not without finishing his opponents, it won’t.

Holding GSP to this standard isn’t excessive; it’s what he publicly and privately demands of himself.

So while B.J. Penn is willing to put up his dukes against competitive competition by fighting above his weight class—even after GSP put him on his lap and grand-daddy spanked him at UFC 94—it isn’t the course GSP is taking into consideration. Dana “doesn’t” like it.

Ok, so B.J. Penn, Anderson Silva, Nate Diaz can all move up, Jon Jones will most likely move up (down the road), Couture can move down at the age of forty-six, but GSP, a top three pound-for-pound fighter, move up a weight-class he’s ruling gracefully? No. That isn’t a sensible move at all.

I hate to pick on the guy for this, but it must be mentioned. GSP is known to have visited a sports psychologist after his legacy-damaging loss to Matt Serra. I know about as much about psychology as you do, but I presume he’s afraid of getting “Matt Serra’d” again.

What has happened since?

Gone is the awe-inspiring striking we saw against Jay Hieron, and Matt Hughes. Gone is the failed submission attempts as we saw against Matt Hughes at UFC 50… well, some things haven’t changed.

The ultimate question is, is it too much pressure for GSP, wanting to be the best P4P fighter ever, gold medalist at a sport he’s never competed in before, all while under Gatorade and Under Armor’s watchful eyes?

The endgame is that Dana’s afraid because GSP is afraid. And GSP is afraid because he knows he’s far from invincible despite how he’s marketed/promoted.

I find it ironic that GSP is trying to put on more weight. Because the way I see it Georges “Rush” St. Pierre has become “too big to fail.” He means too much to the UFC banner now and too much for MMA sponsorship deals in the future. The fruit of the dollars he’s earning now will not be enjoyed only by him; more importantly it marks an opened door for mixed martial artists to receive increased sponsorship compensation in previously untapped markets.

This matters to Zuffa because they have no collective bargaining agreement in place now or for the foreseeable future. It can be argued that the more money a fighter makes outside of Zuffa, the less they’ll feel the need to compensate their fighters with their own funds. To Zuffa brass, GSP is bigger than just PPV figures that may or may not dwindle if he keeps up his best Floyd Mayweather impersonation.

That’s just my own conspiracy hypothesis. What’s for sure is that he’s breaking down barriers with his marketable Ken Doll qualities and otherworldly takedown prowess. Whether it’s the one he wants, he’s paving a path for years to come for all MMA athletes. He may not go down as the best mixed martial artist ever. But “most impactful” seems to be well within his reach.

I just wonder if Georges will harbor any regrets and be at ease with that marginalized legacy.


===

Questions? Comments? Email me at Bjorn.hansen@fiu.edu

ALERT: Every Tuesday night, listen to the MMATorch Livecast from 9-10:30 p.m. ET or listen now to the most recent shows by clicking here. Listen live this coming Tuesday as Jamie Penick, Rich Hansen, and Matt Pelkey discuss the latest MMA happenings. Online listen at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/mmatorch or call into the show at 646-716-8090 to either just listen or participate.