Georges St. Pierre is a two-time UFC Welterweight Champion (excluding the fact that he won the Interim Championship before fighting Matt Serra for the Undisputed title) and is still on his second reign as the #1 fighter in his weight class. The criticism that has plagued his career even with such a dominant streak is the fact that he has not definitively finished an opponent his winning back the title in his rematch at UFC 83: Serra vs St. Pierre 2 against Matt Serra who was the last man to beat him. A reasonable exception is the rematch at UFC 94: St. Pierre vs Penn 2 when Penn's corner stopped the fight in between the 4th and 5th rounds, though there are many who do not count that as a forced stoppage. The greatest criticism has come following that bout as St. Pierre has taken four straight Unanimous Decision wins over all of his opponents since his second victory over Penn.
- Starting at UFC 100, St. Pierre took on dangerous striker in Brazilian born Thiago Alves where the strategy was made clear throughout the fight. St. Pierre did not intend at all to take on Alves in the striking whelm, and therefore exploited his lack of takedown defense by dominating him the entire fight en route to a Unanimous Decision.
- The next challenge came against another dangerous striker in Englishman Dan Hardy at UFC 111: St. Pierre vs Hardy, where St. Pierre again intended only to take down another striker with a lack of takedown defense. The change of plans in this bout was that St. Pierre did attempt a few submission attempts with no success as he either did not perform them properly, or Hardy simply resisted with shocking persistence. After this bout, St. Pierre made it clear in interviews that his goals against fighters who are specialists in one specific area, was to avoid it at any cost, even if it meant being a "boring" or "point fighter."
- His next title defense came as a rematch against heavy handed elite wrestler Josh Koscheck at UFC 124: St. Pierre vs Koscheck 2. Since he was taking on an opponent with a dangerous ground game, St. Pierre switched his strategy to keep this standing and land boxing combinations for five full rounds. The striking paid off early when St. Pierre broke Koscheck's right orbital bone with jabs alone, but showed a lack of killer-instinct just landing combinations and jabs expecting somebody to stop the fight (resembling Manny Pacquiao). Taking home another Unanimous Decision, St. Pierre apologized to his fans claiming he was hoping to finish the fight.
- The fourth and most recent title defense was in a long anticipated bout against multi-promotional champion and former Strikeforce Middleweight champion Jake Shields in the biggest event ever in UFC history at UFC 129: St. Pierre vs Shields. A majority of fans and analysts knew that St. Pierre had no intention of going to the ground at all with an elite submission grappler, but many were still surprised that he committed to that plan. St. Pierre made it no secret that he intended to only stand against Shields, but also continually stated that he would look for the finish and even promised it for the fans. Some of the greatest criticism came with the event as this main-event bout was one of two not so entertaining for this event. St. Pierre looked to timid and even scared of Shields not throwing as many strikes as expected and tried so hard to land an overhand right so many times that Shields saw them coming. Even when landed clear shots that rocked or sent Shields down momentarily, St. Pierre did not follow him looking for the finish. The lack of intensity and urgency from the Canadian idol that is St. Pierre even attracted boos from the 55,000 plus Canadian fans in the enormous arena, and once again he apologized for not finishing. With such a performance against Shields, fans are now turning down their previous desires of hoping to see a super-fight with Silva vs GSP.
Many justify St. Pierre not getting a finish simply because he is the champion. This argument states that as the champion, he possesses what the challenger wants and therefore it is the opponent who should be coming towards him to take it. This argument does attract some understanding, but the counter argument is simply that as champion, he should prove continuously that he is the superior fighter by besting his opponents in any way to definitively finish them. An argument that we have made is that if he is truly the champion and a true mixed martial artist, then he should willingly take on his opponent's strengths. Simply being to stand and trade with strikers like Alves and Hardy, go head-to-head with Koscheck's wrestling, and test his elite grappling against the reputation of Shields when on the ground. As a champion, St. Pierre should be willing to prove his own striking against dangerous strikers and go to the ground with elite grapplers.
Such performances from St. Pierre have have attracted so much criticism that analysts and fans are beginning to reconsider their hopes for a Silva vs GSP super-fight, seeing how predictable it would be. As a fighter who admits he would prefer to simply control an opponent where they are weak, St. Pierre would simply look to wrestle Silva to the ground and control him there en route to a decision, where as Silva would prefer to use his far more superior striking and be prepared to submit St. Pierre off his back at any moment. With criticism reaching this far, it is a question if Georges St. Pierre is ruining what legacy he is trying leave behind in the sport.
Arguably St. Pierre has become the face of MMA and the UFC after the retirement of former champion and Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell. St. Pierre has appeared on the cover of magazines, is widely admired and idolized in his home nation of Canada, is receiving mainstream sponsorships with brands like Under Armour and appearing on commercials. One of the most promoted figures in the sport, a lot of money is risked every time St. Pierre comes into a fight. Brands like sponsoring a good looking face, body, and record. Seeing as he has been taking the easier ways to win a fight, St. Pierre appears to have investments deep in his mind and is protecting his own brand. Even with a record like his, sponsors and investors could still drop him like a bad habit should he be brutalized by a far more superior striker, or embarrassed by a far more intense grappler. So is the great GSP playing it safe for his own health, his reputation, his sponsors, or for his own brand as a perfect physical specimen?
Arguably St. Pierre has become the face of MMA and the UFC after the retirement of former champion and Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell. St. Pierre has appeared on the cover of magazines, is widely admired and idolized in his home nation of Canada, is receiving mainstream sponsorships with brands like Under Armour and appearing on commercials. One of the most promoted figures in the sport, a lot of money is risked every time St. Pierre comes into a fight. Brands like sponsoring a good looking face, body, and record. Seeing as he has been taking the easier ways to win a fight, St. Pierre appears to have investments deep in his mind and is protecting his own brand. Even with a record like his, sponsors and investors could still drop him like a bad habit should he be brutalized by a far more superior striker, or embarrassed by a far more intense grappler. So is the great GSP playing it safe for his own health, his reputation, his sponsors, or for his own brand as a perfect physical specimen?
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