George and I

Georges St. Pierre, the consensus Pound for Pound #1 Fighter in the World.

I might have written on this subject before, but even when I was into team sports I found it a bit odd when someone would talk about their favorite team in the first person. For example, “we need to do this” or “we would have won if only…”, etcetera.

It should be no secret to anyone that my favorite sport  is Mixed Martial Arts, known to the layman by the name of its most famous and successful promotion, the UFC. As an interesting note, last year’s AP Style Book listed “ultimate fighting” as the proper use for the sport. This is wrong practically and grammatically. The idea is that it’s the ultimate “fighting championships,” not the “ultimate fighting” championships.

While I’m on the subject of the AP Style Book, don’t listen to what they say about the Oxford Comma. You absolutely need it! Let’s say I win an award and I say “I’d like to thank my parents, Neko Case, and Jesus Christ.” With the oxford comma there it makes sense. But if I drop it and say “I’d like to thank my parents, Neko Case and Jesus Christ,” then it looks like I’m saying my parents are Neko Case and Jesus Christ. Which isn’t true, because Jesus didn’t have any children and Neko Case is going to be my future ex-wife.

So it’s Mixed Martial Arts, not “ultimate Fighting.” And use the oxford comma!

Anyway, where was I? Oh, yeah, that weird thing sports fans do where they talk about their team in the first person. It gets weirder when you realize that you can also substitute we for “the team and I.” But I figure since it seems to be the accepted form, I should probably start doing the same with my favorite fighter in MMA: UFC Welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre.

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As some of you may know, we have a coaching gig coming up on the next season of “The Ultimate Fighter.” Our opposing coach, Josh Koscheck, will be getting another crack at our title after the season has ended.

George and I have been down this road before. Josh challenged us back in August of 2007, and we used him to clean up the Octagon. He underestimated our wrestling ability and he paid for it dearly.

Now it’s three years later, and Koscheck has made some improvements in his game. He’s become a more well-rounded fighter. On the other hand, George and I have been making our own improvements.

George and I train hard all year round, whether we have a fight scheduled or not. If you can point to any one thing that makes us better, it’s discipline in our workouts. I mean, just look at us. We look like we’re cut out of marble, and more importantly, our cardio is insanely good.

Of course, being as good as George and I are comes with its negatives, and there’s always going to be doubters. The most notorious instance of this occurred when BJ Penn accused George and I of greasing up our bodies to evade his submissions. That’s ridiculous and was a simple misunderstanding. One of our usual cornermen wasn’t there, and his substitute was performing a simple massage that we always have during our fights. Unfortunately, he also was putting the vaseline on our cuts, and so some small trace amount was left over. The referee was right there in-between rounds and admonished our man for his temporary lapse in judgement regarding the rubbing of the shoulders. If he thought George and I were significantly greased, he would have said something to us.

The bottom line is this: I respect Josh Koscheck, even if he doesn’t respect us. Still, as good as he is, there is no doubt in my mind that George and I are at the top of the Welterweight Division.

Just wait until you see us in the Octagon.

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As a bonus and a callback to a post from yesterday, check out GSP interrupting Taylor Swift.