Georges St. Pierre Wants UFC Return After Health Issues Are Resolved
Former two-division Ultimate Fighting Championship title holder Georges St. Pierre is still holding out for the right fight in the UFC while he recovers from ulcerative colitis he developed as a result of his weight gain for his middleweight debut against Michael Bisping last November.
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“Definitely the worst has passed,” St. Pierre said. “I’m dosing down the medication that I have. The medication is anti-inflammatory, so you have to dose it down. Not in one shot, you can’t stop in one shot, but I’m dosing it down every month and soon it will be past, a story of the past. As it goes right now, pretty much all of the symptoms are almost gone.”
It is well-documented that “GSP” only wants to return to the
Octagon to fight someone that enhances his legacy in the sport.
The 37-year-old dominated the UFC’s welterweight division from 2007 until his indefinite retirement in 2013, beating the likes of Matt Hughes, BJ Penn and Nick Diaz during that time.
After a four year hiatus from the sport, St. Pierre accepted a title fight in 2017 at the heavier middleweight division against Bisping, submitting him in the third round and capturing the middleweight belt.
St-Pierre relinquished the belt just 34 days after capturing it, informing the UFC that he didn’t want to hold up the division as he wouldn’t be able to defend the belt as a result of the colitis. Since that decision in December, he’s been taking medication as a well as undertaking intermittent fasting to control the condition.
While St-Pierre is concentrating on his getting his health back to 100%, the former welterweight king isn’t ruling out a return when the time is right.
“I don’t want any contract to fight somebody right now,” St-Pierre said, “because the minute you sign a contract, the mental warfare starts, and stress is something that amplifies everything. So I want to make sure I deal with it, I take care of it, and when everything will be finished, I will be able to look forward. My health is the most important thing for me.
“[But I’m] absolutely not [closing the door on fighting again]. I’m keeping the door open. When I close it, then people will know. But right now it’s held open.”
St-Pierre has stated in the past of his motivation to achieve something that no one in the UFC has done before which is to capture three title in three separate divisions. The logical decision is him attempting to capture the lightweight belt currently held by Khabib Nurmagomedov, who will be fighting Irish megastar Conor McGregor in 10 days’ time. Another possibility for St-Pierre to achieve his goal would be if the UFC introduced the rumored 165-pound division.
“GSP” has never cut to 155 pounds but said his walking around weight of 183 pounds is actually lighter than many lightweights including the champ Nurmagomedov.
“I feel much healthier than I was. I’m about 183 pounds, 184 pounds when I wake up in the morning,” St. Pierre said. “I’m about 183, 184, that’s my natural weight. I believe everybody has an optimal weight where they can perform a physical task, [a weight] that it should be. You have a weight that is the optimal weight — that is your weight that you will perform at your best. That’s my weight. I tried to put on some weight for Bisping, but it was a mistake. I should have stayed at my actual weight, who knows if I would have fought better. But one thing is for sure, my health would not have been compromised.”
UFC President Dana White has gone on record to say St. Pierre will not be handed another one-off title shot so if he was to return to attempt to capture the 155-pound belt he may have to earn it the old fashioned way.
“I can’t say yet, yes or no. One thing I know is the UFC will never want me to go to 155,” St-Pierre said, laughing. “They will be scared that I will ride off into the sunset with their belt again. And I understand them. I understand them from a business standpoint.”
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