Georges St-Pierre has gone into detail on why he never fought Anderson Silva.
There was a time when GSP and Silva were considered to be the best MMA fighters of their era. Today, many have slotted them at the very top of the all-time list. For many, however, GSP vs. Silva is the fight that got away.
St-Pierre dominated the welterweight division, while Silva ruled the middleweight roost. Many fans clamored for a super fight between “Rush” and “The Spider” but it never happened.
During an interview with MMAJunkie, St-Pierre dived into why he never shared the Octagon with Silva.
“There was a time that we were talking with Anderson Silva for a fight. It never materialized but I never had a contract in front of me ready to sign. People were just speculating in the media and everything. Looking back, if we would’ve done this it would’ve been great but it needed to be done at a catchweight with drug testing.
“That was my condition and I don’t think UFC wanted it at the time. At the time I had so many challenges in my division. I was very busy in my division. I didn’t want to go up, gain weight, try to go up, and then come back down. It would’ve been crazy, maybe a career breaker for me.”
Nowadays, the UFC is partnered with USADA to ensure that all athletes are drug tested. This type of system is something GSP long pushed for but he was ridiculed by UFC President Dana White whenever he’d ask for it.
GSP has since retired from pro MMA competition, while Silva has transitioned to the world of boxing. While you can’t say “never” in the world of combat sports as far as St-Pierre vs. Silva is concerned, fans are still left to wonder what could’ve been in their prime years.
