Join Heavy.com today for our live blog of today’s UFC 124 media conference call.
The call will feature the two fighters featured in the main event title bout on December 11, UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and top contender Josh Koscheck.
The conference call is set to begin today at 2:00 p.m. ET. Refresh this page for the latest updates.
— Running a little bit late, but the call should begin momentarily.
— St. Pierre says that he was impressed by both of his fighters in the finale of the recent season.
— Koscheck is asked about preparing for St. Pierre, to which he says that he is preparing for everything. He says he has to against such a great athlete like the champion.
— Interesting question brings up Koscheck’s win over Paul Daley earlier this year compared to St. Pierre’s style of coaching on this season of “The Ultimate Fighter”. Koscheck was very critical of the grinding style of Team GSP
— St. Pierre is asked if he agrees with Dana White about being the top athlete to come out of Canada. He says it’s hard to say and brings up Wayne Gretzkey and his greatness in the hockey rink.
— Koscheck is asked about his status as a villain now compared to before his time as a coach this past season on the reality series. He says his reputation has probably gotten a bit worse.
— ‘Three years ago I learned a valuable lesson,” Koscheck stated, regarding the rematch. “You don’t get second chances in life often.” Koscheck then explains that he has brought in a lot of wrestlers, as well as working with the phenomenal talents at American Kickboxing Academy.
— St. Pierre is asked about Koscheck’s attitude toward him on the show, stating that his arrogance did not affect him. He says that he is the best version of himself that he has ever been and is excited to show it to all the fans watching this weekend. However, he does say that Koscheck’s trash talking motivated him to train harder.
— Koscheck says that he does not need anyone to “get under his skin” to get motivated to train hard and win inside the Octagon. He says he doesn’t need to have his opponent trash talk to get in there and win the fight.
— After recent criticism from Dana White against Greg Jackson, St. Pierre is asked about his thoughts on the situation. He says that the fighters under Jackson walk away with fight bonuses quite often. He says that he is entering this fight looking for a finish, and that his punching power has been a big focus in this camp. After training with Freddie Roach, he believes that his technique has improved and that he is much more confident.
— Roach said that St. Pierre would defeat Koscheck via second round knockout with a left hook. Koscheck says that his mom predicted that he would be the one winning in that fashion.
— Koscheck is then asked if the sport needs personalities like him. He says that his style and attitude is great for the sport because people want to tune in and see St. Pierre beat the “bad guy”. He then questions if St. Pierre will be a boring fighter or if he “has the balls” to stand and trade.
— Cain Velasquez earned the heavyweight title this past October, and Koscheck is asked about training with the world champion. He says it is great to train with a guy like that and believes that there will be another belt at AKA in the short future. He also says that Velasquez will be in Montreal for the fight and that it is going to be a fun night.
— St. Pierre is then asked whether or not he feels he needs to get a finish after several consecutive decision victories. He says that he has been working on that and that he wants to earn the stoppage for the fans supporting him.
— St. Pierre received a lot of love for his coaching job on “The Ultimate Fighter”, and Koscheck says he is not sure if he can comment on the editing factor of the show when asked about the comparison in coaching. He says that he believes the best fighter won the competition, but that there is a lot of editing that goes into it.
— Both are then asked if they would coach again. Koscheck says he would do it if the promotion wanted him to, but if he had the option he probably wouldn’t because he wants to fight more often. St. Pierre, however, says he would absolutely do it again.
— Koscheck is then asked how often he would like to defend the title should he win on Saturday night. He says he would fight every week if he could, but St. Pierre says that two or three fights a year allows him to improve more and learn more about his upcoming opponents. The contender says he would fight three or four times realistically.
— After the judges’ decision in the Nam Phan vs. Leonard Garcia fight from this past weekend, both are asked about how that affects them in terms of letting a fight go to the scorecards. St. Pierre says he missed the fight, but heard about it. He says that he wants to finish the fights and keep it out of the judges’ hands. Koscheck says that it does increase the pressure and that he is always looking to finish the fight.
— Koscheck was on “The Ultimate Fighter” for the opening season and he was just recently a coach, prompting a question about the progression of the reality series. He says the show has become fine-tuned and that during the first season he and the other contestants were test dummies.
— Koscheck is asked about recent “vandalism” to his Wikipedia page. As expected, Koscheck says he just does not have time to worry about what people think. He says he is not on the internet very often because he does not want to get in debates on Twitter and other sites. He says he needs to focus on what is most important, his upcoming bout.
— The challenger is asked about his training at American Kickboxing Academy. He says they fight three times a week and that everybody is pushing you. If you have a bad day in the gym, Koscheck says you really go home and question yourself. He also addresses Velasquez again, stating that the new heavyweight champions recent win really put things in perspective for him.
— I have to say, I am a bit surprised to hear another question about Koscheck and Fitch fighting, though I probably should not be. Koscheck is asked about it, stating after a very long pause that he will never fight Fitch. He says he will move up in weight or cut off his leg and move down before facing his teammate.
— St. Pierre is asked about his upcoming match up, and he says that it is definitely the one he wants. He says Koscheck talks a lot of trash, but he has good stand up and good wrestling. He is then asked about fighting B.J. Penn for a third time, to which he responds that he is not focused on any fight except the one before him.
— A great question is asked about Koscheck’s sense of urgency to win based off the path Jon Fitch has taken since losing to St. Pierre in their title clash (Fitch, arguably the second best welterweight in the world, has been dominant of late, but still cannot seem to earn a rematch). Koscheck says that it does not bother him and that he does not think about it. He just says that he believes Fitch will get an opportunity again soon.
— Lastly, Koscheck addresses the layoff he has had between fights. He says the time off is obviously a financial burden, but that his timing is good and that fans will see the best Josh Koscheck in a long time on Saturday night. He then addresses his trash talk again, stating that he puts together a great story for fights, but now he has to go out there and perform.