Georges St-Pierre will be on the shelf for awhile. By his own estimation, it’ll likely be at least November before we see the welterweight champion step in the cage for a title unification bout with interim champion Carlos Condit.
But St-Pierre’s keeping busy with rehab, and now he has a new hobby to keep him busy: poker.
Poker megasite PokerNews.com passed along the info:
Online gaming company 888 announced Thursday that mixed martial arts champion Georges St-Pierre is the company’s newest global ambassador. The current UFC Welterweight title holder recently signed a 12-month deal with 888 that will see him participate in the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event, as well as several other poker tournaments around the globe.
Poker News also reported that St-Pierre will play online poker tournaments to benefit his anti-bullying foundation. The welterweight champ said he’s excited to delve into the popular poker world:
“I am very excited to become a global brand ambassador for Team 888poker,” St-Pierre said. “I have wanted to play poker for a while now as it is a great game of skill. It is not just your cards versus my cards; it is you versus your opponent. However, the most important aspect of my partnership with 888poker is that we are going to generate a great deal of money for my foundation that dedicates its efforts towards anti-bullying causes.”
St-Pierre won’t be the first UFC personality to enter the poker world. Ring announcer Bruce Buffer is a constant presence at poker tournaments around the world, and welterweight Mike Swick has participated in the World Series of Poker. Former heavyweight Heath Herring has also become a regular fixture at poker events.
One interesting question: Will the UFC allow St-Pierre to sport the 888 Poker logo on his shorts in the cage? I can’t imagine that they will. Gambling companies used to be heavily involved in sponsoring UFC events. Full Tilt Poker was once a signature sponsor for events.
But that was before their push into the mainstream and the television deal with Fox. It’s likely that St-Pierre will remain involved with 888 Poker outside the cage, but don’t expect to see him sporting the logo during his fights.
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