Georges St-Pierre is officially back with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
A couple of days ago, a report surfaced claiming that the longest reigning welterweight champion in UFC history had agreed to terms on a multi-fight contract with the UFC. Today (Feb. 17) the news has been made official.
UFC President Dana White confirmed to Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times that “Rush” has signed a new deal with the promotion. You can see the tweet for yourself below:
Dana White just made it official to me: @GeorgesStPierre is back in the UFC. Signed deal. More soon at @latimessports …
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 17, 2017
St-Pierre has not stepped inside the Octagon since Nov. 2013. He made his ninth successful title defense in a controversial split decision victory over Johny Hendricks. A lot has changed in the 170-pound division since that time.
Hendricks eventually captured the welterweight gold after St-Pierre took a hiatus. He then lost it by split decision in a rematch against Robbie Lawler. After two successful title defenses, Lawler dropped the title in a knockout loss to Tyron Woodley.
At UFC 209 on March 4, Woodley will defend his championship in a title rematch against Stephen Thompson. The bout will take place inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It’ll be interesting to see if “Rush” cuts the line and forces Demian Maia to wait even longer for his title opportunity.
It’s also possible that St-Pierre cuts the line for a middleweight title shot. Even though White has claimed that Yoel Romero is next in line for a shot at Michael Bisping’s middleweight championship, “The Count” has been adamant about securing a “big money” fight with St-Pierre.
Georges St-Pierre has never competed at middleweight, although fans had hoped for years that he’d engage in a super fight with the longest reigning champion in any weight class in the UFC, Anderson Silva. That’s another bout that has been speculated upon St-Pierre’s return.
