The UFC’s reigning welterweight king, Kamaru Usman, has let it be known that he’d love to fight Georges St-Pierre. But, it looks like the legendary fighter has firmly shut the door on his fighting career.
St-Pierre says bout with Usman isn’t in the cards
After Usman scored his latest title defense, by handing Jorge Masvidal a decision loss at UFC 251, the champion called out the storied fighter (quotes via MMA Mania).
“I was told before this week that myself and Georges St-Pierre are tied for longest consecutive wins,” Usman said. “And the crazy stat is it took us approximately 1875 or 1825 days to get there.
Georges is one of those guys who’s been considered the best for a long time, and even though he’s away from the sport he’s still considered that.”
“I would love to test myself against a guy like him, he’s a dog. And if not, then as a champ I have to continue to defend the belt until I’m ready to walk away, and there’s no shortage of dogs in the division.”
“That’s a fight that I look at and I love and I want,” he added during the post-fight press conference. “I want a fight like that, to be able to train and showcase all my skills and have him showcase his skills.
I think that’s a crazy fight, a huge fight, and I think a lot of people would want to see it.”
Well, since then, GSP spoke with TMZ. While the Canadian star heaped praise on Usman for his abilities, the former welterweight and middleweight champ reported he’s not looking to comeback (quotes via MMA Junkie).
“Sometimes I’m watching the fights, and I’m like, ‘Man I think I can beat these guys.’ Or after when I’m done training I feel like I’m very confident,” St-Pierre said.
“But then after I go home at night, and I’m thinking about all that crazy thoughts, and I’m like, ‘I’m gonna be 40 years old soon.
Do I really want to go back and do a hardcore training camp of two months, put myself in jail so to speak, and get ready for hell? I’m like, ‘No, I don’t.’
“I’ve done it for a very long time, and unfortunately in my sport there are too many guys that retire too late, and I do not want to be one of these guys.”
“I saw the fight. He’s amazing,” St-Pierre said. “What a great fight. He’s very, very smart. Everyone talks about his physical abilities and his skills, but what I think is his best attribute is his brain.
He’s very, very smart. He’s very good at becoming the perfect nemesis for his opponent, and he fought almost a perfect fight. He’s an amazing fighter, and he’s gonna go far. He’s gonna be one of the best if he keeps going like that.”
Not surprising
If you’ve followed the career of GSP, and what he’s said about his retirement in the last year or so, these comments shouldn’t be a surprise.
Before St-Pierre officially retired, he said he wasn’t really interested in fighting for the welterweight title again. His focus was adding to his legacy, and few would argue that he’s already the greatest welterweight champ of all time.
GSP did express an interest in fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov, as the latter’s never lost, and St-Pierre would make history if he won the lightweight title. No fighter in UFC history has won titles in three different divisions.
More About:MMA MMA Frenzy Sports