See what Georges St-Pierre has to say about the conference call that put him under attack by UFC 158 opponent Nick Diaz. GracieMag.com was present at the UFC 158 open workouts while Diaz was not. Will he show at the main event? GSP believes he will.

Caio Terra (far right) with Condit and team in Montreal, Canada, prior to UFC 154 / Publicity photo

GRACIEMAG.com: Now the dust has settled, what are your thoughts about Carlos Condit’s performance against Georges Saint-Pierre at UFC 154?

CAIO TERRA: Carlos put on a big-time display of true, smooth and free-flowing Jiu-Jitsu. He’s really smart and a fast learner. I trained him for about 40 days, which isn’t very long when it comes to Jiu-Jitsu. But he did great. Carlos is the only guy who Saint-Pierre hasn’t passed the guard of; except for Jake Shields, who’s a ground-fighting specialist, so GSP didn’t want to him take down—he beat him standing. GSP easily passed the guard of a phenomenon like BJ Penn, passed Dan Hardy’s 26 times! He only made it to Carlos’s half-guard, a position where he attacked but also got attacked. GSP never made it to side-control, the only position where he could have attacked and hit, because Condit didn’t let him.

Do you feel Condit could have attacked more on the ground?

I feel all the blood that came out at the start of the fight made things more slippery, which hindered Condit in using his Jiu-Jitsu. Even on bottom I feel Carlos hit harder, though. All you have to do is take a look at GSP’s face after the fight; he was beat up worse than Carlos. And Condit didn’t get hit all that much in half-guard.

After the fight, Cesar Gracie said that you’re no longer part of Gracie Fighter Team because you trained Condit. How did you deal with that?

I’m chill. I know I didn’t do anything wrong, and don’t regret it. When I moved to the USA I’d already been a black belt for a year, had already won the Worlds and other titles at every other belt. After three years teaching at Cesar’s academy, in 2010 I took off and started my own academy—with Cesar’s permission. It’s been a while now that I haven’t met up with anyone from Cesar’s MMA team, if just because on weekends I always travel to teach seminars.

You’d already notified Cesar and Nick Diaz, another welterweight contender, that you were going to coach Condit, right?

When Condit got in touch with me I immediately asked Cesar if it was cool. But he was aggressive with me, which made me sad because I saw that he didn’t have the same respect for me as I had for him. A few weeks later I bumped into him at an event, and he told me it had all been just a joke, that there was no problem, and that I should speak with Nick, who’d already faced Condit. Since Nick’s impossible to get a hold of, I asked Nick to call me, which never happened.

Do you feel you did anything wrong?

No. First of all, Nick isn’t just suspended; he said he was retiring (laughs). Secondly, I was training Condit to face GSP. Nick and Nathan have trained with a bunch of opponents in the past, like BJ Penn, Ben Henderson, Frankie Edgar. It’s normal. Jake [Shields] has trained with the Blackzilians. I have nothing but respect for them all, so the lack of respect for me saddens me.

Condit playing open guard against GSP / Photo by Josh Hedges/UFC

He said that you went to train Condit so you could make money and get some press…

If Cesar was unhappy, all he had to do was call me to tell me I was off the team, but he wanted to let it all out in the press. I didn’t want that press, nor did I want to appear in the UFC Countdown special. To paint a picture for you, it was Dana White who called Carlos and demanded that I be on the special. He’s the one who wanted to see shots of Jiu-Jitsu training to publicize the fight with. Anyways, I just want to make it clear that I didn’t coach Condit for press or for money. I need money just like the next guy, but that wasn’t my main motivator.

What was your main motivation, then?

I’ve done plenty of competing in Jiu-Jitsu. I’ve won all the big tournaments, and sometimes you need a new challenge to give you that extra motivation. Carlos is an excellent person, a talented fighter and true warrior, and I wanted to help him because I’d already seen him helping a lot of other people. I wanted to help him by teaching him modern Jiu-Jitsu, and I feel it was a phenomenal experience. And what a fight!

Braulio Estima and Fabio Gurgel training at Alliance / Photo by Jair Lacerda/GRACIEMAG

“I think our fight at UFC 154 is going to have all the aspects of a good MMA fight: punches, kicks, takedowns, Jiu-Jitsu. But I believe the ground game will be the key to victory, both for GSP and for me.”

Carlos Condit, on welterweight title fight coming up this November at UFC 154

“GSP seems even better than he was before, with his added desire to get back to fighting after such a long layoff. A lot of folks would be intimidated about returning, but he’s excited about it.”

Bráulio Estima, on training with the Canadian UFC champion in Montreal, Canada

“The rivalry between our academies was always limited to the mat. I’m proud to have been a student of Rolls’s, as well as of Reyson, Carlinhos, Crolin and then Rickson. I’m eternally thankful to the family, and I consider Carlinhos to be a brother. Gracie Barra and Alliance are sister teams, and they’ll always be part of Jiu-Jitsu history.”

Romero Jacaré, team Alliance founder, on Bráulio Estima seminar at Alliance SP

“The IBJJ Pro at the end of the year will be really cool, and the lightweights and featherweights get to compete against each other. There are some tough guys who I’d like to compete against, like Rubens Cobrinha, Bruno Frazatto and Rafael Mendes, who’s a really good and strategic guy.”

Leandro Lo, providing fuel for fan expectations about the IBJJ Pro, coming up December 8 in California

Condit (right) and his arsenal to conquer the welterweight belt

UFC welterweight star Carlos Condit is almost ready for his November 17 showdown with Georges St-Pierre in Montreal, Canada. GRACIEMAG.com had a quick chat with the Greg Jackson-trained fighter to find out about the hard task at hand, what weapons he’ll be wielding in combat, how training with Caio Terra has been going, and how his ground game has been coming along—a chat about Jiu-Jitsu, of course.

GRACIEMAG: GSP has been away for nearly 18 months. So far, though, he’s always managed to take his opponents down and control the fight. How do you think you can beat the Canadian star in Montreal, at UFC 154?

CARLOS CONDIT: I have many weapons in my arsenal that I can use to beat George. Even so, I know I have a tremendous task ahead of me. And I will have to fight the best fight of my life, if I expect to walk away with the undisputed title.

Fighters often dream of or at least imagine how the fight will go in their heads. How do you see this battle going?

I see our next fight in November being very dynamic – with all aspects of the sport being displayed: striking, wrestling, Jiu-Jitsu. But the ground game will be the key to victory for both GSP and myself.

How is the Jiu-Jitsu training with Caio Terra going? Do you feel the same pleasure training in Jiu-Jitsu as you do in striking?

I think I do. It’s very tough to choose between them. I would have to say I love training striking and grappling equally. The BJJ training sessions with Caio have been exciting. He’s a great Jiu-Jitsu competitor, one of my favorites to watch, and he’s always teaching me some new moves so my Jiu-Jitsu will always be fresh in the octagon.

After 18 months and two operated knees, GSP’s back in the UFC, and right near home. UFC publicity photo.

This coming 17th of November in Montreal, Canada, hometown hero Georges Saint-Pierre will be returning to the octagon after a lengthy leave of absence. His time on ice due to a string of knee injuries now counts 18 months, and the Canadian champion will have his work cut out for him right off the bat, as he faces Carlos Condit, the owner of the interim welterweight belt.

During the Quebecois fighter’s time away, Condit took his post as interim champion after outpointing Nick Diaz at UFC 143, in a decision that much of the audience felt should have gone the other way.

The Greg Jackson-trained American is worthy of his laurels, though. A complete striker who loves knocking down anyone in his path, the Jiu-Jitsu purple belt is a well-rounded fighter—and he’s coming off five back-to-back wins.

Now, GSP isn’t complaining about ring rust. At the first pre-event press conference, the Gracie Barra Montreal black belt said he’s in tip-top shape.

So who’ve you got winning it, gentle reader? Decision, submission, knockout—how will it end? Comment below and prove that GRACIEMAG.com readers know most, when it comes to MMA and strategy.

UFC 154
Bell Centre, Montreal, Canada
November 17, 2012

Georges St-Pierre vs Carlos Condit
Martin Kampmann vs Johny Hendricks
Rafael dos Anjos vs Mark Bocek
Patrick Côté vs Alessio Sakara
Nick Ring vs Costa Philippou

Under card:
Mark Hominick vs Pablo Garza
Francis Carmont vs Tom Lawlor
Sam Stout vs John Makdessi
Rodrigo Damm vs Antonio Carvalho
Cyrille Diabate vs Chad Griggs
Stephen Thompson vs Besam Yousef
Ivan Menjivar vs Azamat Gashimov

Arte que aparece na capa do perfil de Cigano no Facebook.

These days it’s not enough to just be good in the ring; you have to shine outside it as well. And if there’s one kind of athlete that’s totally tuned in to the new tools available on the internet, it’s the MMA fighter.

And as it could be no other way, the biggest names in the UFC already have their official Facebook pages up and running. On these online profiles the fighters tend to announce news from their careers, as well as offer an opportunity for the Facebook community to like, praise, and–why not?–criticize them.

GRACIEMAG gave the social networking site a once-over and compiled the main pages of the current UFC champs. Get connected and have fun.

Heavyweight

Junior Cigano

Light heavyweight

Jon Jones

Middleweight

Anderson Silva

Welterweight

Georges Saint-Pierre

Carlos Condit (interim)

Lightweight

Ben Henderson

Featherweight

José Aldo

Bantamweight

Dominick Cruz

Renan Barão (interim)

Rodrigo Damm in photo by Josh Hedges

One of the standouts from the Brazilian version of The Ultimate Fighter reality show, having made it through to the semifinals but withdrawn due to health issues, Rodrigo Damm has been confirmed for the UFC 154 card. The black belt will square off with Antonio Carvalho at the November 17 event in Montreal, Canada.

Damm’s last appearance in an official UFC event came at UFC 147 last June in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where he subbed Anistavio Medeiros with a rear-naked choke.

Now Antonio “Pato” Carvalho is coming off a knockout win over Daniel Pineda at the July 21 UFC 149 event.

Rodrigo Damm em foto de Josh Hedges.

Nome de destaque na versão brasileira do The Ultimate Fighter, quando chegou à condição de semifinalista mas teve de desistir da disputa em razão de problemas de saúde,  Rodrigo Damm foi confirmado no card do UFC 154. O faixa-preta enfrenta o canadense Antonio Carvalho no evento marcado para o dia 17 de novembro, em Montreal, no Canadá.

A última aparição de Damm em um evento oficial do UFC foi em junho, quando finalizou Anistavio Medeiros com um mata-leão no UFC 147, em Belo Horizonte.

Já Antonio “Pato” Carvalho vem de vitória por nocaute sobre Daniel Pineda no UFC 149, em 21 de julho último.

A luta principal do UFC 154 será válida pela unificação do cinturão dos meio-médios entre o canadense Georges Saint-Pierre e o campeão interino Carlos Condit.

Fique ligado no GRACIEMAG.com para todas as notícias sobre o UFC>

After getting pulled from the main event against Georges Saint-Pierre for going awol in promoting the big show, Nick Diaz has returned to the card of the very same event.

While Carlos Condit, who was set to fight BJ Penn, was called on to substitute Diaz against Saint-Pierre, Diaz is now Condit’s replacement against BJ.

Over Twitter UFC president Dana White commented on the odd twist of events over the last 24 hours: “It’s crazy! You wanted it, you get it. Penn vs. Diaz on October 29!”

So now with the new matchups, who are the favorites in the evening’s two main events?

Nick (right) with brother Nate

He missed three flights and cost the UFC 15,000 dollars in replacement tickets.

With one of the stars of the UFC 137 main event gone awol, UFC president Dana White decided to switch opponents for Georges St.-Pierre’s welterweight title defense.

Diaz is out and at large, and Carlos Condit is in.

The decision to scratch him from the card seemed so inevitable that even Diaz’s coach, Cesar Gracie, backed it.

Hours before the announcement, Diaz resurfaced – at least virtually –, posting a video on Youtube entitled “Looks like someone don’t want me to win.”

Anyone who thought he was going to ask forgiveness and get the UFC to change its stance was sorely mistaken.

The “bad boy” attacked Dana White’s decision and guaranteed he’s ready to fight.

“I won’t make it to the beauty pageant… I’ve never backed out from a fight,” he says to his friend’s camera, while driving from San Francisco to Stockton, California.

Check out what Strikeforce welterweight champ and former UFC title challenger Diaz has to say, while we await a response from the UFC:

White addresses the Canadian people: “We're going to make more noise than an AC/DC concert,” he articulated, among other gems.

The city of Toronto is a perfect microcosm of Earth. There’s the Italian neighborhood, one for the Portuguese, a nook for gays. And the majority is Chinese, but maybe I miscounted.

There’s something of everything amid this friendly people. We can see inhabitants dead set on burning of the bits of chub accumulated over winter – GSP, the middleweight champion and star of this Saturday’s UFC, is on the cover of a magazine for muscle heads. There is, by the same token, a portly population that just can’t keep from scarfing down the deliciously sugary stuff on offer around here. Irresistible – if your mind is weak. (One time an overweight inhabitant bought up ten donuts and ten coffees. Nine coffees were chucked in the trash. It was all for him, but the cashier didn’t need to know that.)

MMA is not, of course, the only quirky sport in the city. There are billboards announcing a pillow-fighting contest, but I couldn’t figure out how to sign up. Some months ago there was an international rocks-paper-scissors championship. It seems there’s a guy who is two-time champion of the event, so there’s some technique going on there. And in the grounds surrounding Queen Street someone’s got to be promoting a craziest-tattoo competition.

In the midst of all this healthy madness, all anyone wants to hear about is the UFC. “I think St-Pierre’s going to lose on Saturday,” abruptly spurts a trolley operator near where the press conference was held, at the banks of Lake Ontario. I ask why, breaking the protocol of not talking to the driver. “Because the last three guy’s he fought weren’t as good as this guy (Jake Shields), and even so he wasn’t convincing to me.” I skirt the debate, but what I take to be the superpower possessed by GSP (21w,2l) is precisely his ability to reshape his game to shut down any opponent, even the savvy Thiago Pitbull, Dan Hardy and Josh Koscheck. Shields (26w, 4l, 1d), I agree, has been having a more impressive run, having faced Jason Miller, Dan Henderson and Martin Kampmann – but my head is telling me that’s where it will end.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xC5UBQOUVOI

Of the ten Canadians on the card (GSP, Mark Hominick, Mark Bocek, Rory MacDonald, Sean Pierson, Yves Jabouin, Claude Patrick, Ivan Menjivar, Jason MacDonald and John Makdessi), the lad from London, Hominick, is in my eyes the biggest underdog of the night. He also proved to be one of the most talented and mindful.

I greeted him at the end of the press conference, with the UFC press adviser impatient to usher him out of there, and he was dying to give GRACIEMAG.com whatever it wanted to know. He gained a fan – but not just yet. All because the deft-boxing Canadian faces, on Saturday, José Aldo the demolisher, the most ballyhooed first-timer in UFC history. Does anyone out there disagree?

To me it’s Aldo’s presence at UFC 129 that makes an excellent card into a stellar one. And judging by Dana White’s cackles at the press conference, when queried by Brazilian TV’s Ana Hissa, Aldo is the big boon that will make UFC Rio 134 go from being just a cool card to a can’t-miss one.

Back to Saturday night, Hominick knows the Amazonas native is all that: dangerous and complete. But he’s confident in the quality of his technique and especially the speed of his fists. To keep the fight standing, where he hopes it stays, he says: “I think Aldo’s instinct is to fight fire with fire, to prove he’s the best at whatever aspect. But I’ll be ready wherever it goes.”

I’m not so sure, champ. GRACIEMAG.com was on the scene for Aldo’s final training sessions, and when ground-training time came around Coach Dedé Pederneiras asked that it not be filmed. Mystery? Secret strategy? No. I think it’s just that the Nova União fighter is going to remind Jiu-Jitsu fans how he is one of the few men to have beaten Rubens “Cobrinha” – something readers tuned in to GRACIEMAG won’t forget.

And Hominick believes that if 55 thousand fans make their noise, that may help him psychologically for the battle. Let’s see how the Chinese conduct themselves.

UFC 129
Rogers Centre, Toronto, Canada
April 30, 2011

Georges St-Pierre vs. Jake Shields
José Aldo vs. Mark Hominick
Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Jason Brilz
Lyoto Machida vs. Randy Couture
Mark Bocek vs. Ben Henderson

Preliminary card on Spike TV

Nate Diaz vs. Rory MacDonald
Sean Pierson vs. Jake Ellenberger

Preliminary card (Informal Canada versus USA)

Yves Jabouin vs. Pablo Garza
Claude Patrick vs. Daniel Roberts
Ivan Menjivar vs. Charlie Valencia
Jason MacDonald vs. Ryan Jensen
John Makdessi vs. Kyle Watson