Georges St-Pierre understands why UFC were reluctant to grant Khabib fight
Georges St-Pierre says it would take a "180-degree turnaround" to convince him to fight again in the octagon.
Published : Apr 15, 2020 15:02 IST
Georges St-Pierre understands why UFC were reluctant to grant him a mouth-watering bout with Khabib Nurmagomedov and said it would take a "180-degree turnaround" to convince him to fight again.
It has been almost two and a half years since GSP last fought in the Octagon when he defeated Michael Bisping to win the middleweight title.
Just 34 days later the Canadian had vacated the belt, which perhaps explains the company's reluctance to push ahead with a bout with lightweight champion Khabib.
St-Pierre, who last year announced his retirement, pushed for a fight fans have been clamouring for but says he can see it from the viewpoint of UFC.
"For me, it was because I considered Khabib right now the best fighter in the world," he told ESPN . "And he wanted to fight me as well. So, I thought it was a good fan fight.
"It you look on the UFC's side, if I put myself in their shoes, they didn't want to take the risk of me winning the title and then vacating again."
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So is that it for GSP, who is a candidate to be considered the greatest of all time given his 26-2 record and the fact that he has won titles in two divisions?
"It would take a 180-degree turnaround," he said. "I'm the happiest man in the world. An athlete has a window. You want to retire from the sport. You don't want the sport retiring you."