After submitting Michael Bisping in a thriller at UFC 217, Georges St-Pierre threw another spanner in the works. Only recently minted as the champion, St-Pierre vacated the title and is now looking way smaller…
For years after UFC 167, ex-welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre toyed with the idea of a return to fighting. Following an extremely controversial decision win against Johny Hendricks, GSP vacated the belt in a storm of media attention.
Four years of comeback rumors and interviews later, St-Pierre was back in the Octagon but in unfamiliar territory. At UFC 217 in November 2017, ‘Rush’ fought and beat <ichael Bisping to win the middleweight title.
His record-breaking and outstanding achievement was quickly accompanied by talks of vacating the belt. That in itself, vacating two belts in different weight classes one after another, is quite the rarity.
Citing illness from overeating to make the 185-pound limit, St-Pierre’s fighting career was again, frustratingly, on hold.
Vacation & Return
During an appearance on this week’s MMA Hour, the former welterweight and middleweight champion discussed a number of hot topics. As well as addressing his reasons for vacating the 185-pound belt, St-Pierre revealed a potential lightweight return.
H/T LowKickMMA for the transcript:
“I could have kept the title for one year, walked around with and take the sponsors. And I could be in the spotlight, say I’m the champion. The truth is I don’t know, I knew I had a condition, I knew I would probably lose weight because I was forcing myself to eat like crazy; it’s not how I eat,
“I had a lot of water retention, not at my natural weight and it’s not a healthy way of living. The reason I vacated the title is because I did not want to put the division on hold. I didn’t want people to wait for me.”
Continue reading the interview below…
“Even though I could’ve done it, I didn’t want to be that guy. I have always been very vocal about fights, being for the fighter’s conditions and I didn’t want to be the guy who stalled the division. Because everyone’s trying to make money and a living. That’s why I vacated the title.”
Like, I don’t know if I will be 185, or 170, maybe even 155, you know?”
“I think so, I think I will fight again. It just depends on my health condition and everything. It’s too soon to say now, but I feel much better now than what I did after my fight. I always prioritized my health over my performance. And I knew something was wrong with my body, and I don’t feel right in my own skin,”
Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
“If I fight, it needs to be something that excites me, something that elevates me. The fight with Michael Bisping was a big risk, but he had the potential to elevate me as a fighter and my legacy,” said St-Pierre.
“That’s why I took the fight, it was a great opportunity, a win-win opportunity. I could have lost and it could have been a disaster. But I was confident I put the work in and it would’ve been win-win. I had a lot to win, and a lot to lose. If I come back, there has to be a lot to win for me, not just a lot to lose.”
Translation: “Give me McGregor’s lucky charms…”
