Chael Sonnen has fought and trained with some of the best mixed martial artists to have ever graced the sport, but there’s one who stands out from the pack.
‘The American Gangster’ has no problem admitting that this legend had strength like no other.
Chael Sonnen still can’t get his head around how strong Georges St-Pierre was
In his esteemed career, Chael Sonnen has gone toe-to-toe with an array of icons, pushing Anderson Silva to the wire in one of the most nailbiting fights in UFC history, and claiming a victory over Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson in Bellator.
However, of all the greats he’s shared the cage and, indeed, the mats with, the Oregon native claims no one comes close to Georges St-Pierre.
In his sensational run at the top of the sport, ‘Rush’ was renowned for his sublime fighting IQ.
But, as the American Gangster found out during a sparring session, the Canadian was much more than just mere intelligence.
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In a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Sonnen said: “It was a strength that’s hard to explain in words. I cannot believe after I felt the strength of Georges St-Pierre, when he grabbed my wrist, I can’t believe the guys that fought him, the Johny Hendricks, Matt Hughes, B.J. Penn, Josh Koscheck, didn’t come out and talk about his strength. I’d never heard anybody talk about his strength.
“He had this strength, and then, his discipline to technique, his inability to get tired. He would only go a little harder than you would go.
“I thought he was going all out, and I knew I wasn’t, so I turned it up a little bit; within a second, he’d turn it up a little bit, I’d turn it up a little bit more, he’d turn up a little bit more. And this kept on happening.
“He would let you pick it up, and he would just stay ahead of you. You couldn’t get him tired. I get everybody tired. I can definitely get a guy smaller than me tired, in a grappling situation—I’m on top of him, that’s why the weigh you in.
“When the whole thing is said and done, if I had to put the guy forward, who is the best guy is—you had to feel them and had personal experience with—I’ve done workouts with Daniel Cormier, and I could name drop some great guys, and they were all very special and unique, but there isn’t a period of time where I need to think—some friend of Kenny Florian’s, we’ll call him Georges.”
Georges St-Pierre confesses Nick Diaz had him panicking in their UFC title fight
While possessing incredible strength, St-Pierre often struggled with crippling nerves regarding setting foot in the octagon.
And Nick Diaz played on that when the pair met at UFC 158 inside the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
The legend recently revealed the mind game the Stockton fighter used to rattle him, and how he ultimately overcame it to win the contest.
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