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What's the story?
Do you still have hopes of another Georges St-Pierre comeback? Bury them right away. The UFC legend himself has ruled out any possibility of returning to the Octagon as he has more important things to focus on as a retired MMA fighter.
GSP was interviewed by TSN during UFC Newark's fight weekend and the former UFC Welterweight Champion resolutely stressed that he is done with MMA.
While a fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov did excite him in the past, GSP admitted that he has moved on from those thoughts and they have been replaced with his responsibilities as a family man.
In case you didn't know...
GSP, as we all know, is one of the most decorated mixed martial artists of all time. The 3-time Welterweight Champion returned to the Octagon after a 4-year layoff and created history by winning the middleweight title from Michael Bisping in November 2017.
Citing medical reasons, GSP relinquished the Middleweight strap after 38 days of the monumental victory and has not returned to fight ever since. Even though his name was brought up for a super fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov, it really materialised as the UFC had other plans for The Eagle, who went on to carve out a dominant path for himself, filled with controversies outside the Octagon.
There was still hope though, until this past weekend. GSP has put all the rumors to bed now.
The heart of the matter
During his chat with TSN, Rush explained the reasons why a dream showdown against Nurmagomedov isn't on his mind anymore.
“It was on my mind when I retired. I really wanted to do it, but now, telling you the truth, UFC were clear, they had other plans for Khabib so I turned a page. I cannot wait for the fight to happen and twiddle my thumbs. I have other plans for my life. Being the best fighter in the world is not my number one priority anymore. It used to be, now it’s not. I have family, friends, I have a lot of more important things to do. I have other projects down the road."
Family is GSP's number one priority with health also being given equal importance. GSP admitted that he currently experiences a mixed feeling when he trains. He gets the itch to fight again when he slugs it out with a young fighter in the gym, but the enthusiasm dies by the time he wakes up in the morning. He can surely fight again, the issue is that the future UFC Hall of Famer just doesn't want to.
“It’s not because I can’t, it’s because I don’t want. It’s not worth it to dedicate all my focus and concentration to this if I’m not gonna fight and get the fight that I want, you know what I mean? So it’s not that I can’t do it. I could come back and fight again but my heart is not there. When I train in the gym I feel very confident. When I train with a young guy I feel like I want to fight again but then I go back home and sometimes I wake up in the morning and I’m like, ‘ Ugh, f*** that.’ So it’s a mixed-up feeling for me now.”
He concluded by saying:
I’m not gonna wait and twiddle my thumbs. I have other things in my life, other big projects that I can’t talk about but I’m working on. I’m always training, I’m always in good shape, I will always be. But competition, for me, it’s a chapter of my life that is over.” H/t credit: MMAFighting
What's next?
GSP was in Nasrat Haqparast's corner - a Tristar gym's pupil - during the latter's impressive victory over Joaquim Silva at UFC on ESPN 5.
The Canadian legend, who himself is a product of Firas Zahabi's Tristar Gym, may never fight again but he will continue to share priceless insights to up-and-coming prospects.
As for Khabib, the reigning UFC Lightweight Champion will put his title up for unification against the interim Champion Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 in September.
