Georges St-Pierre is back.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) teased fans with a “special announcement” before the UFC 290 pre-fight press conference today (Thurs., July 6, 2023). What fans got was the return of one of the all-time greats, former Welterweight and Middleweight UFC champion, St-Pierre.
Instead of (once again) ending a multi-year-long hiatus to fight in mixed martial arts (MMA), St-Pierre will compete at a UFC Fight Pass Invitational grappling event in Dec. 2023.
What drove GSP to the FIGHT PASS Invitational mat?! pic.twitter.com/wFYmpTfiSb
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) July 6, 2023
“I’m still in very good shape,” St-Pierre told UFC News. “I love the adrenaline of what a competition gives you, and also I want to give an avenue to fighters who retired. We still want the kick of competition, make money, and also train with and compete when the risk of injuries are to a minimum because of the nature of the sport of submission wrestling. I also want to help submission wrestling and jiu-jitsu to make it bigger.
“Because UFC Invitational of Fight Pass is taking over this, I think it’s gonna help make the sport bigger than it’s ever been,” he concluded. “So, it’s never been a better time to be a jiu-jitsu fan right now.”
St-Pierre’s last fight came at UFC 217 in Nov. 2017 when he won Middleweight gold, submitting Michael Bisping via a third round rear-naked choke. The bout was St-Pierre’s first in four years after vacating the Welterweight crown in 2013.
The grappling opponent welcoming “GSP” back has yet to be determined, but whoever it is, the legend knows it will be a fun challenge and sight for everyone.
“There’s a few options I’m going to look at with the UFC people, my agent and we’re going to try to make the UFC, I, and most importantly, the fans happy,” St-Pierre said.