Georges St. Pierre Discusses Next Fight After UFC 217
We are now just a few weeks away from the long awaited return of Georges St. Pierre
After scoring a highly controversial split decision victory over Johny Hendricks to retain his welterweight title at UFC 167 in 2013, St. Pierre said that he needed to step away from the sport of mixed martial arts. Many, however, didn’t expect the layoff to last very long, but it has indeed spanned four years.
“Rush” will next take on middleweight champion Michael Bisping in the main event of UFC 217 on Nov. 4, 2017 at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York City. At 36 years of age, St. Pierre could still very well have a few fights left in him, but he’s admitted that he’ll retire for good if he comes up short against Bisping.
And if he doesn’t? Well then he’ll have to defend the 185-pound title against interim champion Robert Whittaker. Many have suspected that St. Pierre will not defend the title if he’s victorious at UFC 217, but it appears to be required that he do so in his contract:
“In my contract, it’s Robert Whittaker. But, Dana is the boss, so he decides what will be next.”
As we often see, however, anything can happen in MMA and especially in the UFC. With the UFC looking to put on the most lucrative fights possible, GSP’s future could certainly involve opponents not named Whittaker.
One fight that he’s often asked about is a potential clash between him and lightweight champion Conor McGregor. It’s unclear how realistic that fight is, but St. Pierre and McGregor represent two of the biggest stars in the history of the sport.
Do you expect St. Pierre to take on Whittaker if he becomes the middleweight champion at UFC 217?
