UFC 143 Results: Did Condit Surpass St-Pierre in Welterweight Rankings?

Carlos Condit beat the odds and scored a unanimous decision over Nick Diaz at UFC 143. He didn't bring an exciting slugfest that many fans had hoped for, and he didn't do enough to unseat Georges St-Pierre as top welterweight.

He may hold the interim title, but it is as temporary as his tenure at the top. He could have made the case if he had beaten Diaz either by submission or knockout, but that didn't happen. Instead he won by decision, the exact thing that fans are tired of seeing St-Pierre do.

The worst part is that he split fans. Some believe that he lost the fight, while others think he did enough to win.

Condit, who has gone for the finish in so many of his fights, played it safe and fought Diaz on the outside. He may have controlled the pace of the fight, but it didn't help him win fans.

Winning a fight that wasn't as exciting as most thought it would be didn't just hurt Condit in this fight. It hurt his match with St-Pierre.

No matter what happened it was always going to be a lesser match then the proposed fight between GSP and Nick Diaz, but if Condit had been able to shut Diaz down, he could have built interest.

He could have also had some fans claiming that he was better than the champion. Those arguments and debates would have built for months while St-Pierre sat on the sidelines.

By the time the fight took place, they could have generated serious heat for the bout and made both men good money.

St-Pierre's biggest criticism is his lack of finishing fights. It is why some fans see him as lower then other fighters, even though he is one of the most successful fighters in MMA today. If Condit had finished his fight, some of those fans would have pushed him ahead in the rankings.

But Condit didn't do that. He opted for the safer route and though it netted him the win, it also cost him a chance at being put at the top.

Matthew Hemphill writes for the MMA and professional wrestling portion of Bleacher Report.  He also hosts a blog elbaexiled.blogspot.com that focuses on books, music, comic books, video games, film and generally anything that could be related to the realms of nerdom.