Georges St-Pierre finally confirmed his desire to return to the UFC this week in an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. In the course of the conversation he discussed his top options as far as opponents were concerned, and the name at the top of his list is new UFC Middleweight Champion Michael Bisping.
For the former UFC Welterweight Champion, the size difference isn’t much of a concern, and there’s another potential record on the line that interests him very much.
“There are two things I’m very proud of: There’s my title – my Welterweight Title that I won – and there’s another record that I hold for the most wins in UFC history,” GSP said. “And now I have someone who’s challenging me for it in Michael Bisping. I do not believe, if I fight him, he will send me back to a movie set. Yes, he’s bigger than me, but I believe I’ve got more skill, more athleticism, and a higher fighting IQ than he does. The world doesn’t turn around me, but if it’s a fight that the fans and the UFC want to make, they’ve got my number. They can call my agent, no problem. We can organize to make it happen and make an agreement.
“It’s something big,” St-Pierre continued. “You just gave me the chills thinking about it, because it’s not the first time that people have mentioned it. I’m sure Michael, on his side, people have talked to him about it, because he created a lot of buzz. I always said, if I come back, I would come back from something very big. Bisping is the man to beat right now. He beat [Anderson] Silva, he knocked out [Luke] Rockhold.
“He’s the bigger name now. He’s the man to beat right now. I always said if I come back, my first fight would be something big that gives me the chills. And he’s a bigger name right now. He is the bigger name, the guy who has the spotlight right now. Like I said, the world doesn’t turn around me. There are a lot of guys hunting him, but if it’s a fight that the UFC wants and the fans want, if it creates a buzz and the money is there, because we’re in a business, I’m down for it.”
There’s another big selling point for St-Pierre in that matchup in that Bisping has been a staunch opponent on PED use. Given the issues in drug testing in the sport that in many ways helped drive him out, Bisping’s history in that regard have St-Pierre even more intrigued.
“What I like about Bisping that makes him, for me, the best candidate: he’s someone who talked a lot about performance enhancing drugs,” St-Pierre said. “He’s big-time against it. He never got caught using it, and that’s one of the reasons why he’s the No. 1 guy. He’s someone I respect a lot, and for this reason, if I go up a weight class, he would be my first choice before Chael Sonnen or Silva or any other guys, because of that.”
Penick’s Analysis: I’ll say this about a St-Pierre-Bisping matchup – it’s infinitely better than the UFC booking Dan Henderson in a title fight. St-Pierre may be able to defeat Bisping, though the size disparity is significant in that matchup. Regardless, if both want it, and it can come together, it’s a big money title fight that could keep St-Pierre on top of the list of wins in the organization. It would also make him a two-division champion, which continues to be an extremely rare feat in the UFC. It’s a reasonable fight to make if that’s the route they want to take.
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