Video: Carlos Condit, fellow fighters talk finishing fights vs. going to the judges

Carlos Condit is considered one of the most exciting fighters on the UFC roster partly because of his high rate of finishes.

From the moment he made his professional debut in 2002, Condit (29-7 MMA, 6-3 UFC) has made a habit of not letting his fights be decided by the judges. Of his 29 career wins, just two have gone the distance – a staggering 93 percent finishing rate.

It’s not easy for fighters to rack up knockout or submission wins on a consistent basis, but Condit has made that his calling card – something the 29-year-old knows is integral with the current state of MMA judging.

“[Finishing fights is] important to me. With judging being as screwy as it is these days, that’s definitely a concern,” Condit told MMAjunkie. “We train to finish, and luckily for me, that’s just kind of my fighting style.”

Condit didn’t receive his “Natural Born Killer” nickname for nothing. Many fighters are unwilling to take the types of risks needed to land a fight-ending knockout blow or tangle an opponent up in a submission. Condit, however, seems to do it with ease, which he admits is a difficult thing to be taught or learned.

“I don’t have to do much different than what I already do,” Condit said. “I just kind of follow my instincts and get the finish very regularly.”

Whether he is on the winning or losing end of a fight, Condit never stops looking for that next highlight to add to his reel. And if one of his bouts happens to end up going the distance, there’s a good chance it will be a “Fight of the Night” candidate.

Condit’s exciting style is tailor-made to milk the UFC’s fight-night bonus system, which to date has scored the American nearly $500,000 in additional cash for his performances.

While the bonuses are a nice feather in Condit’s cap, he says if the UFC opted to take them away, he’d still be looking for that finish every time, because simply winning isn’t enough to scratch the itch.

“I don’t think I would fight any differently if there wasn’t bonuses,” Condit said. “But it’s a great perk.”

MMAjunkie recently asked fighters at UFC 169, including Abel Trujillo, Travis Browne, Cub Swanson, John Makdessi and Eliot Marshall, how important it was to finish fights in light of recent criticism thrown Benson Henderson’s way for his string of decisions in the UFC. Check out that video above for more on finishing fights vs. just getting a win.

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