Georges St-Pierre believes Khamzat Chimaev could have done a lot better if he was a bit more strategic against Gilbert Burns in their firefight at UFC 273.
Chimaev passed the toughest test of his career by beating Burns in a closely contested bout by unanimous decision at UFC 273, where he was cut, dropped, and stretched to the limit in a gruelling 15 minutes of non-stop action. The Chechen-Swede had never been threatened across ten pro fights and had only one blow touch him in four UFC fights before his scrap with the Brazilian, in which he absorbed a total of 141 strikes, including 119 significant strikes.
After the fight, Chimaev admitted that Burns was a lot tougher than he expected and said he has nothing but respect for ‘Durinho’.
Georges St-Pierre On Khamzat Chimaev
In an interview with MMA News (as transcribed by BJPenn.com), St-Pierre said that Chimaev could have made things easier for himself if he fought smart against Burns.
“I think it was a great fight for him,” St-Pierre said. “He needed this because he went through everybody a little bit like butter. You need some adversity sometimes and in the adversity, you get better and improve. So I think it was a good fight for him.
“It’s not good to get hit in the head. I like to watch him fight but I don’t think he fought the smartest fight. I think he could have made it easier for himself. He’s just used to going through everybody like this but you can’t fight like this at the elite level. You need to prepare, to gameplan and become the perfect nemesis for your opponent. You can’t always go in there and try to trade blows with someone like this.”
Do you agree with Georges St-Pierre?
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