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BostonHerald.com - Blogs: Inside The Octagon

Josh Grispi doesn’t know what went wrong in UFC 125 loss

If you watched Josh Grispi get dismantled at Saturday’s UFC 125 and wondered what happened to the featherweight phenom, you’re not alone. Like many fans, Grispi has no idea why he performed so poorly in a unanimous decision loss to Dustin Poirier.

“I’ve never felt like that for a fight,” Grispi said. “I didn’t feel like myself even going out. I was trying to get ready for the fight and I just couldn’t get into the mode to fight. I don’t know. I was trying to the whole time. I couldn’t think of what to do. I don’t know. I just froze up, I guess. I don’t know. It’s the first time I’ve ever felt like that.”

That explanation sums up the feelings of most everyone who had previously seen Grispi fight. His hype justifiably blew up when he ripped through his first four WEC opponents in 6:51 combined. Facing solid competition, the 22-year-old Plympton native had barely been touched, finishing each opponent in the first round.

Grispi (14-2) impressed so much that he was granted a featherweight title shot when the WEC and UFC merged. He was supposed to face Jose Aldo on Saturday, but the champion withdrew with an injury. Instead, Grispi got Poirier, a 21-year-old with a sparse resume and — as Grispi found out quickly — a strong stand-up game.

Poirier pounded Grispi with punches, elbows and knees for 15 minutes. Often, Grispi was reduced to covering up against the cage.

“I knew he was tough, he’s a brawler, he’s a tough kid – I just didn’t give him a fight,” Grispi said. “I didn’t really fight my fight. I didn’t really fight back. I was just in my own head. I just couldn’t think.”

While Poirier was the better fighter Saturday night, he likely isn’t that much better than Grispi. That’s what will eat at Grispi as he trains at South Shore Sportfighting in Rockland.

“I can’t look at it anymore,” Grispi said. “I’ve just got to keep trucking, keep moving on and getting another fight in there right away. I want to smash someone. I’m pretty pissed at myself.”

Grispi received a medical suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission until July 1 with a jaw injury. But the suspension is largely precautionary, and Grispi expects to be cleared to fight soon.

When Grispi returns to the cage, he expects to be a better fighter.

“I learned obviously I can take a bunch of shots to the face and I know my heart,” Grispi said. “I always know I can go three rounds even if I’m getting beat up, the whole fight is going the wrong way — I can still stay in there and still try to win. It’s the worst night I’ve ever had and I still didn’t get finished. Even though it was a horrible performance on my part, I definitely learned from it.”

[TBEAR]

“I learned obviously I can take a bunch of shots to the face and I know my heart,” Grispi said. “I always know I can go three rounds even if I’m getting beat up, the whole fight is going the wrong way — I can still stay in there and still try to win. It’s the worst night I’ve ever had and I still didn’t get finished. Even though it was a horrible performance on my part, I definitely learned from it.”

Aldo would have finished him

Josh will be back though, he is very young and got some soild skills

[Xanatos]

Josh is a great fighter, just needs more work developing his skills. He's a good athlete, but he got hit hard too many times and couldn't overcome that.

[TheDoucheyWun]

I think him too confident/ cocky with all the hype behind him comming in is what did it... go from suposed to be fighting the top dog to some guy no1 has ever heard of..Plain n simple he took dustin lightly n payed the price.

[carbondioxide830]

maybe having zuffa change your opponent three different times played a role in that joshy boy.

[JCVD]

I like Grispi, he's a great athlete, but i honestly think he just came up against a superior striker, who had good power and solid take-down defense. When he saw he couldn't beat him on the feet, he had trouble taking him down and holding him down. The better man won the fight.

[stpierrecanada]

I know what happened, he got his ass beat. Dustin Poirier is a monster and he underestimated him big time I believe. It will be very interesting to see what more Poirier to earn his title shot and we will see if Grispi can bounce back stronger.

[optimusjoel]

Although I didn't watch the fight I know exactly what he means by being in his own head. It's a horrible feeling and I get like that every time I have to speak on camera or in front of a large crowd.