Georges St-Pierre remains a retired fighter, since it looks as though a bout with Khabib Nurmagomedov probably won’t happen. But, recently the former welterweight and middleweight champ outlined where he thinks he’s better than the UFC’s undefeated, lightweight king.
If you’ve followed St-Pierre over the last year or so, then you know the Canadian star made it clear he was interested in fighting Nurmagomedov. The latter has also pushed for a bout with St-Pierre, and continues to do so.
But, since St-Pierre ended up vacating the middleweight crown he won back in 2017 (GSP cited his battle with ulcerative colitis as why), UFC President Dana White has repeatedly shot down the idea of Nurmagomedov – GSP. The claim being that the UFC doesn’t want to have GSP fight for another belt, if he’s not committed to defending the title moving forward (and, there’s also several top contenders at 155).
Well, despite all this, talk about Khabib – GSP hasn’t gone away. Recently “Rush” spoke with TSN, and whether he thinks he could beat Nurmagomedov, he said this (quotes via MMA Fighting):
“I think there’s different areas of the fight that I’m better than him,” St-Pierre said. “Even though he’s better than me in some stuff, I’m quicker in and out and controlling the distance and getting inside for the takedown faster in the open stance. He’s better near the fence, I’m better in the open.
“If I keep that fight in the open, I win.”
Yup. That certainly sounds like a plan for him. Few would likely argue that St-Pierre’s striking game is more dynamic and well rounded than Khabib’s. The latter could very well be the greatest grappler in the game, but, St-Pierre was widely regarded to be one of the best wrestlers in the game during his reign. Further, he also holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
But, as noted above, it’s hard to imagine this fight happening. If Khabib gets by Dustin Poirier on September 7th, Tony Ferguson’s in the mix, as will be the winner of Justin Gaethje- Donald Cerrone, and Conor McGregor is still hanging out in the wings as well.
St-Pierre, meanwhile, is now 38 year’s-old. So, even if Khabib defends the belt, say, three more times and White becomes open to St-Pierre fighting for the belt, the latter will be almost 40.
More About:MMA MMA Frenzy Sports