Georges St-Pierre will go down as one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time.
‘GSP’ dominated at welterweight for years before taking a break from the UFC in November 2013.
Four years later, the Canadian fight icon beat Michael Bisping to become a two-weight UFC champion.
Instead of defending his middleweight belt, Georges St-Pierre decided to call time on his legendary career.
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Georges St-Pierre credits rivals with pushing him to greatness
Georges St-Pierre retired from MMA on a 13-fight win streak, with an impressive 26-2 record.
The 44-year-old beat every man he fought after avenging defeats to Matt Serra and Matt Hughes.
Anderson Silva and Demetrious Johnson achieved great things during St-Pierre’s UFC era.
Without realizing it, they pushed him to stay at the top of his game for as long as he did.
“I had Anderson Silva, and I had Demetrious Johnson and other champions that were staying there,” St-Pierre told Sportsnet.
“So it forces me to stay in there because when you’re a champion, you no longer compete against the next opponent, you compete for your legacy against other guys of other divisions and even other sports, too, from a competitive standpoint, have a better legacy.
“That’s what sports is about, it’s performance.”
Will Georges St-Pierre ever fight again?
In April, Georges St-Pierre revealed he is ‘100 percent’ down for a comeback on one major condition.
‘GSP’ told Bloody Elbow’s Kyle Dimond his actual fighting days are done for good, but he’d be happy to compete in grappling under the right circumstances.
“I’m trying to get back 100 percent,” St-Pierre said.
“If it’s for a good cause, I mean, I would never fight again in mixed martial arts, trying to prove I’m the strongest man, this is over. But, if it’s for an event like a special event, maybe a charity involved, for the fans something fun like grappling, the risk of injury are minimized.
“I still like to compete, but for different reasons. Maybe not, I don’t close the door on that.”