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UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre -- roughly a month away from his ballyhooed rematch with lightweight king B.J. Penn -- wants to take care of the business he left unfinished.
St. Pierre (17-2) will defend his belt against Penn at UFC 94 on Jan. 31 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas in what many are calling the most anticipated bout of 2009. Controversy surrounded their first confrontation, as the popular Canadian eked out a split decision over Penn (13-4-1) at UFC 58 in March 2006, and St. Pierre wants to provide a decisive conclusion to their rivalry.
“This time, I want to go for the finish,” St. Pierre told Sherdog.com in an exclusive video interview. “I don’t want to go to a decision. I want to take him out.”
Should St. Pierre survive Penn, a showdown with fast-rising Brazilian striker Thiago Alves could await. The 25-year-old American Top Team welterweight has won seven consecutive fights -- his list of recent victims includes former welterweight titleholder Matt Hughes, Karo Parisyan and Chris Lytle -- and will enter his next match with plenty of momentum.
Alves (16-3) last competed in October, when he cruised to a unanimous decision victory over the highly regarded Josh Koscheck at UFC 90.
“The way he beat Josh Koscheck was very impressive, and it proved he’s a very serious contender for the title,” St. Pierre said. “Right now, I’m focusing on B.J. Penn. When the time [comes to face Alves], I truly believe that I’m a better fighter than he is, but there’s only one way to find out.”
Check out Marcelo Alonso’s full interview and watch St. Pierre address training partner Patrick Cote’s decision to fight middleweight champion Anderson Silva on a bum knee and the potential for him to move up to the 185-pound division after his showdown with Penn.
Video Size: 22.31 MB
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