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#8: Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit, UFC 143
February 2012’s UFC 143 was supposed to see a main event fight between Georges St-Pierre and Nick Diaz for the UFC Welterweight title, but when GSP tore his ACL and was forced onto the sidelines, the UFC brought in Carlos Condit – one of the most exciting and aggressive fighters on their roster – and put together a Diaz/Condit fight for an Interim title instead.
It was genius booking and literally every MMA fan on the planet was salivating about the clash, as both men were known for their intense attitude, incredible aggression, and their ability to put on amazing fights inside the cage.
Unfortunately for the fans, though, Condit and his camp decided they’d rather win the title than simply look to entertain the crowd, and so the ‘Natural Born Killer’ came out with a far more cerebral gameplan – using footwork, movement and a lot of kicks to frustrate and outpoint Diaz from the outside rather than trade off with him.
The fight did have a handful of exciting moments but it never came close to living up to the hype, despite a decision that caused controversy as Diaz and his legions of online fans felt he deserved the win. As it was, Condit’s smarter gameplan led him to a unanimous decision victory, and he went on to fight St-Pierre later that year.
