After s 29-second knockout over respected journeyman Mike Pyle at UFC Fight Night 26 on Saturday, Matt Brown is on the short list of 170-pound fighters ready for a title shot against champion Georges St-Pierre.
“The Immortal” has now won six in a row, with five of those victories coming by way of knockout, giving members of the media no choice but to finally rank Brown in the division’s top 10.
While Brown may be on the road to a showdown with GSP, his path to victory, as he told MMA Junkie Radio, sounds quite shocking.
"I know where my wrestling stands," Brown said. "It's simply a matter of executing those abilities in the ring with 'GSP.' I can outwrestle him. I'm calling it right now.”
"It sounds f---ing ridiculous, and everybody is going to laugh at me, and I know the forums, everybody's going to talk about how I'm delusional and this and that. ... I know where I'm at."
Brown has maintained his stance that he can dethrone the dominant French-Canadian champion since he told Bleacher Report “I’m one of the worst matchups for GSP,” noting that St-Pierre would not be able to take him down or outstrike him on the feet.
Despite not having a background in high school or collegiate wrestling, St-Pierre is regarded as one of the best takedown specialists in MMA, outwrestling respected grapplers such as Josh Koscheck (twice), Matt Hughes (twice) and Jon Fitch in the past.
Brown, known for his violent knockouts, has been working on his wrestling at the Ohio Regional Training Center, frequented by the Ohio State wrestling team, Olympic hopefuls and World Team members.
Despite having decent grappling accolades in the form of a brown belt in Judo and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, nine of Brown’s 11 losses have come by way of submission.
While this may no longer be a problem for the fan friendly brawler, he hasn’t lost since November 2011, GSP, a Renzo Gracie black belt in BJJ, would likely provide a stiff test for anyone on the ground.