GSP is now officially back in the UFC after signing a new deal with the promotion after lengthy contract negotiations.
“He’s back. I’m excited,” White told the LA Times. “We worked at it for a long time and finally got it done.”
The UFC had played hardball with St-Pierre last year when he initially indicated that he wanted to return after having been on hiatus since late 2013, with contract talks stalling after face-to-face talks in Las Vegas, leading to the former welterweight champion declaring himself a free agent.
In the months since it’s been clearer than ever that the UFC still needs major stars like GSP who are able to ‘move the needle,’ with all signs pointing to Ronda Rousey stepping away from the sport, while Brock Lesnar announced his retirement in the past week and Conor McGregor is on an extended hiatus and pursuing a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
In his heyday St-Pierre was the UFC’s most consistent pay-per-view draw, and the 35 year-old returns to the Octagon with his 12-fight winning streak still intact and plenty of big fights awaiting him in more than one weight class.
“It could be the winner (of the March 4 welterweight title fight) between Tyron Woodley and Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson, or it could be (middleweight champion) Michael Bisping,” White said. “Georges has also talked about fighting at 155 pounds (lightweight). He says he can make the weight.
“But I have no idea when he’s going to fight right now. We don’t have anything booked and literally haven’t talked to anybody about it.”
It’s been a rough start to 2017 for the UFC, but yesterday was a shot in the arm for the promotion, with GSP now back on-board and Cris ‘Cyborg’ Justino cleared to compete again by USADA, bringing a new sense of optimism about what could be in store for the rest of the year.
