• UFC 129

St-Pierre 'not afraid' to mix it with Shields on the mat

Georges St-Pierre insists he is not afraid to get into a ground war with Jake Shields, and the UFC welterweight champion claims he is a cleverer fighter than his UFC 129 opponent.

St-Pierre's dominance of the 170lb weight class stretches back to August 2007, and Shields has not tasted defeat since December 2004. The challenger is adamant St-Pierre has only ruled the UFC terrain because the pair are yet to meet, but GSP has a different theory.

Having watched Shields win his last 15 fights, St-Pierre insists nobody has been prepared to take on the Cesar Gracie jiu-jitsu man on the mat, which is where GSP excels.

"Jake Shields hasn't lost in six years, he's won 15 fights in a row, but he hasn't fought me. The UFC world title is a different game," said St-Pierre. "He's a guy I've wanted to fight for a long time, and he's the greatest welterweight - the guy to beat, we're gonna clash together and it's going to be a good fight.

"Jake Shields is the best jiu-jitsu guy in the UFC right now. I know what he's going to want to do to me, he's going to try and set up his takedowns with strikes, take me down, mount me, and try to submit me from there.

"He doesn't know what I'm going to do to him. I can knock him out standing, I can knock him out on the floor or I can submit him. I'm not afraid to go on the floor with him and that's something different that he's never faced before.

"Everyone he has fought was afraid to go on the floor with him. Not me."

There are many MMA experts claiming Shields will walk away with the belt when the pair meet in front of 55,000 fans on April 30, but St-Pierre disagrees.

"I'm a cleverer fighter. I will dictate the pace of the fight, and it will finish with 'and still UFC welterweight champion, Georges Rush St-Pierre'."

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