Although UFC President Dana White recently went on record predicting that we have seen the last of Georges St-Pierre in the Octagon due to his belief that GSP’s “heart isn’t into it” anymore, Firas Zahabi, the longtime trainer of the Canadian MMA star begs to disagree.
Zahabi spoke with Brett Okomoto of ESPN.com recently and gave the latest updates on his most famous pupil.
Regarding White’s belief that St-Pierre is done with fighting, Zahabi claims the decision hasn’t been made yet.
The six-week camp is just to see what his body feels like. (UFC president) Dana White has said people don’t do things like that and it’s bulls—, but Georges does that. He will go through the pain of a six-week camp just to see where his body is.”
According to Zahabi, GSP taking time off after his title defense against Johny Hendricks at UFC 167 was just what the doctor ordered, and could be one of the reasons why we see a new-and-improved GSP if he ever returns to the sport.
“All I can say is I’ve seen Georges a lot more up in spirits since he took a break. I think he’s been a lot happier. Listen, if you overwork somebody — and I’m not saying the UFC overworked Georges. I think Georges overworked Georges. He’s very difficult on himself. I’ll tell Georges he’s had enough and he’ll say, “please, just one more thing,” and that will turn into another two hours of training. He’s very disciplined. I think over time his batteries drained and he needed time off. Now, he’s one of the happiest people I’ve ever met. And what makes him even happier is competing and that’s why I think he’ll want to take it to the next level.”
