UFC welterweight champion Georges St Pierre and No. 1 contender Thiago Alves, who will meet at UFC 100, aren't just the top two welterweights in the UFC. They might also be the two biggest. On a call Thursday to promote their upcoming fight, St. Pierre and Alves said they both weigh more than 190 pounds right now, just over two weeks out from a UFC 100 weigh-in for which they'll have to tip the scales at 170.
"I'm waking up around 191, 192. That's normal for me right now," Alves said when I asked him how much he weighs. "I think on the day of the fight I'm going to be around 190 to 195, something like that."
I asked St. Pierre the same question, and he said he's slightly lighter than Alves: "I'm about 188 or 190 pounds and when I step in the Octagon that's the weight I will be," St. Pierre said.
Alves has had trouble making the welterweight limit in the past, including coming in at 174 pounds for his fight with Matt Hughes last year, but he said that he won't have any trouble getting down to 170 before this fight.
"Nobody likes cutting weight, dehydrating yourself, but it's part of the game," Alves said.
But while Alves is a little bigger than St. Pierre -- and significantly bigger than St. Pierre's last opponent, BJ Penn -- neither fighter thinks an advantage of a few pounds is going to make adifference when they fight.
"We're going to weigh in the same, at 170, and I don't think a size advantage is going to mean much at this level," Alves said. "Georges is a pretty big guy, too, and very well rounded, so I'm not counting on that. I'm just counting on my training, everything that I've been through, and I'm just going to let it go on July 11."
St. Pierre agreed, adding that he thinks Alves is his most skilled opponent to date, and that the winner of the fight will be the fighter with greater skill, not with greater size.
"I don't think it will make a big difference because I always train with bigger guys than me," St. Pierre said. "And I truly believe that in our sport, skill and technique always beat strength and size, so the guy who will win the fight is the better fighter, not the bigger guy."
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-25-2009 @ 2:35PM
Livin Legend said...
MDS, I think it is time you stop bringing up he missed weight like two fights ago. he did have an ankle injury a week before the Hughes fight that prevented doing the cardio he needed to do to get him down to 170.
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6-25-2009 @ 3:07PM
richardbikle said...
weight ins should be about 20 minutes before a fight at most. i'm sick of guys weighting 20 pounds over a class going in and competing, its just bs. i'd like it even better if the scales were the top step before getting in the octagon/ring.
There is no excuse for not making weight.
St. Pierre should win this one, i think he has the better preperation.
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6-25-2009 @ 4:35PM
neozoo said...
yeah, i never have gotten the whole i'm 15-20lbs over the weight class thing and i don't like it.
that is definately something that should be changed and fixed in mma. for some reason it doesn't seem as crucial in boxing.
alves sure looks jacked on some kind of juice.
i'm not saying, i'm just saying...
not that i have anything against alves, however, i'll be rooting for GSP.
6-26-2009 @ 7:29AM
jay said...
Anthony Johnson is a big dude too. I'd love to see him come up as a rising star for 2010!
I think GSP is going to win, but I'd liek to see Alves take the upset. He's improved his overall ability over the past year or two, and would be nice to see him take the victory.
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