• Welterweight

St-Pierre fought Diaz despite injury

ESPN staff
March 21, 2013
Georges St-Pierre outclassed Nick Diaz at UFC 158 © Getty Images
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Georges St-Pierre's victory over Nick Diaz at UFC 158 last weekend appears even more impressive following his trainer's confirmation that the welterweight champion entered the bout with an Achilles injury.

The immaculate St-Pierre dominated the bout, successfully defending his title with a unanimous 50-45 50-45 50-45 decision over Diaz, although trainer Firas Zahabi believes that the five-round demolition of his challenger may have made the injury worse.

"I was worried it would tear during the fight," Zahabi told MMAFighting.com. "We had to cut his last sparring [session] short due to his injury. He had a week to rest it and then the fight."

Trainer Zahabi has insisted that St-Pierre, who has successfully defended his welterweight title twice in four months, should take an extended break in order for the injury to heal properly.

"He's 32 soon," Zahabi said. "He needs to respect that."

UFC president Dana White recently confirmed Johnny Hendricks as the No.1 contender in the welterweight division, although St-Pierre has expressed an interest in a super-fight with Anderson Silva.

However, St-Pierre's manager Rodolphe Beaulieu has backed trainer Zahabi's thoughts and claims that a longer break is what the champion requires.

"He wants to take a couple of months off because his two fights were very close to each other," Beaulieu said. "And he wants to enjoy the summer. We haven't talked to the UFC yet, so we don't know what their plans are for Georges yet."

Last year, St-Pierre underwent surgery on his right leg to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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