Georges St. Pierre: I Would Fight Anderson Silva

Former longtime UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre left a huge gap in the sport when he vacated his title belt after a highly controversial split decision win over Johny Hendricks at last November’s UFC 167.

Citing personal reasons for leaving MMA behind, it’s since arisen that “GSP” also has some serious problems with how the UFC does business, something that elicited a surprised reaction from UFC president Dana White.

St. Pierre is still leaving the door open to a return, but he wants things to get fixed before he does. The UFC isn’t exactly known for acquiescing to fighters’ thoughts about changing the promotion, but “GSP” is glad that he doesn’t have to think about it for the time being.

He told Combate that he’s open to a return if things change, clarifying that he’s still on hiatus for his own mental well being (transcribed via MMA Fighting):

“I’m not sure. I see what’s going on in MMA and I like the fact that I don’t have to think about it. I just want to step aside and watch them fight, see what’s going to happen and a bunch other things I can’t say right now (laughs). Maybe, one day, if the things happen like I think they should happen, I’ll return. I don’t know how long it may take, but I’m waiting.”

“I read once that people thought I was on rehab. Some rumors are funny, they make me laugh. The reason why I took this break is because of my mental health. Few people know how is to stay at the top for so long. The pressure is not the same of a regular fight. Every fight is a world championship fight, and it comes with a bunch of promotional stuff. I was never obligated to do it; I did it because I wanted to. And I would do it again if I had to.”

St. Pierre continued on about the media windfall following his win over Hendricks and how the media responded, noting that some fighters are scared to offer up their true opinion on the current state of affairs in the UFC:

“You, journalists, know how to read between the lines. I don’t need to say. Some of you are smart, others aren’t (laughs). You can write whatever you want about it, I don’t care. Everything I say drops like a bomb, and the last thing I want to do it hurt the UFC and MMA. I always fought for the sport and I wouldn’t hurt it.”

“I just wanted some things to change. The way things are, I’ve been receiving messages, some secret, from people that are afraid to publicly say what they think and congratulating me for doing what I do for the fighters and the sport, encouraging me to continue.”

St. Pierre is rather candid in his statements about returning to the sport. He’s definitely earned his time off, and it’s beginning to sound more and more like he’ll return to the Octagon sometime soon. However, that doesn’t mean he’s focused solely on getting his belt back, as he stated that he would actually fight former middleweight champ Anderson Silva:

“I got to a point in my career that, even though I loved the belt, I wasn’t fighting for it anymore. It had more to do with my opponent and the challenge. I’d rather fight a better fighter with no title on the line than fighting a regular fighter in a title fight. The fight itself is what interests me the most.”

“There’s always a possibility. Some fighters want to fight me because of my name, others for the money. I would fight Anderson Silva. I would even fight Brock Lesnar if it’s a fair fight for both. I’m not afraid of anyone, but I’m not stupid (laughs). Many people think that a fight shows who’s the toughest, but that’s not my case. I see things in a professional and intelligent way.”

There’s no doubt St. Pierre is one of the most intelligent fighters the sport has ever seen. But his long-rumored superfight with “The Spider” has lost most if not all of its steam with both competitors on the sideline and unsure to return. Silva has appeared to progress undeniably fast in his rehabilitation from the broken leg suffered against Chris Weidman at UFC 168, and his management has hinted at a fight with “GSP” for “The Spider’s” return bout.

But it sounds like there’s going to have to be some big changes in the UFC before “GSP” comes back. Still, if a St. Pierre vs. Silva superfight were on the table, White & co. might be willing to make some concessions for their former PPV king.

Do you still want to see this fight, or is this just more rumors about something that will never happen? And what are the changes “GSP” is looking for before he returns?