The situation at the top of the UFC’s welterweight division might have just gotten more interesting. Kamaru Usman recently defended his belt against Jorge Masvidal, and the champion hasn’t waited long before deciding which opponent he wants to face next. Usman picked a fighter with name value to challenge – except, it isn’t any of the current usual contenders at 170 lbs.
The fighter that Usman called out is Georges St-Pierre, the legendary former champion who was last seen almost three years ago winning the middleweight belt against Michael Bisping. The return had many fans excited to see what would happen next, after GSP exceeded expectations, but the fanbase would be left hanging as St-Pierre announced his retirement in 2019.
Usman doesn’t think that St-Pierre should remain retired.
What words did Usman have for GSP?
Calling out St-Pierre while speaking to TMZ, Usman challenged the former welterweight champion to another fight for the title.
“George can still do it. He proved it 2 years ago when he came back that he can still do it. I feel that he’s still able to do it, I feel like he’s still able to come in and be that opponent where people are unsure like, ‘You know what, we don’t know if Usman’s got this one.’ And I think Georges St-Pierre can be that guy,” Usman stated.
“I would love to test myself. I’m a martial artist just like he was a martial artist and if he still has some fire burning in that oven, let’s test it out!” Usman added.
But it’s been quite a while since we’ve seen GSP in the octagon, and there’s been no actual indication that GSP intends to come back. Some might consider it weak that Usman is targeting a fighter who has been out of action for a couple years and is currently 39 years old.
GSP’s legacy at welterweight already looks over, too. He hasn’t fought in the division since 2013 and when he once again won the belt, it was at middleweight and not welterweight.
With that being said, if the fight did ever happen, it could definitely have interesting outcomes – it would perhaps be one of the more interesting veteran against rising star bouts, as at the end of the day, GSP still has one of the best track records in UFC history despite age.