Former welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre recently gave his analysis of the UFC 279 main event between Khamzat Chimaev and Nate Diaz.
“This fight is at welterweight. I think it favors – the odds will be towards Chimaev. I think it favors him because of that. However, Nate Diaz, you can never count him out,” St-Pierre said during a Q & A during UFC Paris fight week.
“He’s very well-rounded. He’s very durable, and it will take a lot to put him away. Khamzat, it’s going to be a tough challenge because he only went the distance in his last fight, I believe.”
Although St-Pierre believes Diaz may be a bigger challenge for Chimaev than a lot of people think, he expects to see the best Chimaev that we’ve seen on Saturday.
“I think he grew incredibly from that (Gilbert Burns) fight. He learned a lot, so I think we’re going to see a better version of Khamzat, still better than what he was,” St-Pierre said.
Diaz is a tough out for anyone, especially in a five-round fight. His pace doesn’t dissipate throughout fights. Acknowledging Diaz’ experience and durability, St-Pierre ultimately picked Chimaev to win this weekend.
“It’s going to be an interesting fight, but if I would have to bet on that fight, of course, I would have to go with the odds and favor Khamzat Chimaev,” St-Pierre said.
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