Despite all the rumors and speculation following Georges St-Pierre’s 2013 bout against Johny Hendricks and the former welterweight champion’s subsequent hiatus from the sport, the Canadian icon always knew he would be back.
“I always thought I was going to return at one point,” he said. “I had this idea in my head and I would not live my life happy if I wouldn’t do it.”
On Nov. 4, St-Pierre makes his first start in four years when he challenges Michael Bisping for the middleweight title in the main event of UFC 217 at Madison Square Garden. In New York this week to promote the bout, the 36-year-old from Montreal sounds happy to back. Not happy for the media’s sake, but happy that he’s back in a place that has been his home for much of his life.
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First up is Bisping, the man with the most wins in UFC history and a fighter coming off a career year in 2016 in which he defeated Anderson Silva, Luke Rockhold and Dan Henderson in succession.
“He’s a great veteran and I’m honored to fight him,” St-Pierre said of the 185-pound champ. “I think it’s gonna be a great fight, but I think it’s gonna be his last fight after I beat him.”
With a win, St-Pierre will join Conor McGregor, BJ Penn and Randy Couture as the only fighters in UFC history to win titles in two divisions, but he’s not promising that middleweight will be his final destination.
“It depends on what’s gonna happen,” he said. “I’m open for a lot of things, but I’m always thinking about the first step ahead, and the first step is Michael Bisping, so we’ll see what’s gonna happen and after that it’s up to the UFC.”
It’s nice to think of an MMA world with St-Pierre back in it, and he feels the same way. So what did he miss the most while he was away?
“The victory,” he said. “The feeling of victory is amazing and it’s something you cannot describe. It’s pretty unique.”
It’s also a feeling he knows better than most, having won 25 of his 27 pro fights. But if you read between the lines, St-Pierre may be predicting that his next fight will be the biggest yet.
“I can’t wait to be back,” he said. “I’m gonna rewrite the page in the history book of mixed martial arts.”
