Dan Hardy: ‘GSP Should Have Handed Johny His Belt’
“I think it left the whole division and the whole situation kind of awkward. A lot of people weren’t happy with the decision [over Johny Hendricks]. A lot of people don’t feel GSP’s in a situation right now where he can just step away from the sport because there are a lot of questions left unanswered.
“The only thing I’m uncomfortable with is the way it was finished, the way it came to an end. I watched the press conference and, for me, the best thing to do would have been for Georges to walk out, hand Johny Hendricks the belt and say, ‘I’m done for a while, when I want the belt back I’ll come and get it.’ Just left it at that.”
“[Hendricks] said after the fight that he was only throwing with 70% of his power. I understand it, it was a smart, tactical thing to do, but once you pass the first two or three rounds, and he’s still there, you’ve got to go get the belt. You’ve got to go take it.
“I think [St-Pierre] lost the fight. I think he retained his belt, but I think he lost the fight.”
“If he’s taking time to step away from the sport, he needs it. There’s a reason for it. We don’t really want to see Georges St-Pierre compete at anything other than 100%. He’s not the champion if he’s not 100%. We need to see him at his best. If there’s something outside the sport that’s affecting him we’re not going to see his best in the sport. If he says it’s time to step away then he should.
“I just feel like it would have been the right thing to do for the sport, for his brand, to [say], ‘There you go. I don’t feel like I earned the belt tonight. I’ll come back and get it when I do.’ Then if he does come out of retirement and get the belt, imagine how people would view him. Best champion of all time.”
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