Editor’s note: The article has been updated at 1:55 to reflect a
dispute about the veracity of the fighter’s confirmation of the
grappling match.
One of the greatest fighters of all time is going to change
disciplines to take on one of the best grapplers to ever compete in
MMA.
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According to
FloGrappling on Thursday, former Ultimate Fighting Championship two-division
champion Georges St.
Pierre has an opponent for his grappling debut in December. At
Fight Pass Invitation 6, which will likely be held at the UFC Apex
in Las Vegas, St. Pierre will ply his trade against Brazilian
submission icon Demian Maia.
The rules will likely be submission-only, with special overtime
provisions that will be announced at a later date. News of this
pairing, one that will headline the Dec. 14 event airing on UFC
Fight Pass, was confirmed by Maia on social
media.
Every now and then, something comes up that
still does really motivate you.
Grappling @GeorgesStPierre
will be a huge challenge & great motivation.
You GSP are one of the greatest competitors ever, whom I respect a
lot. I’m game! Looking forward to competing at @ufc
invitational.— Demian
Maia (@demianmaia)
July 20, 2023
“Every now and then, something comes up that still does really
motivate you,” Maia wrote.
“Grappling Georges St.
Pierre will be a huge challenge & great motivation. You GSP are
one of the greatest competitors ever, whom I respect a lot. I’m
game! Looking forward to competing at UFC invitational.”
The last time “GSP” competed as a professional, he put
then-middleweight kingpin Michael
Bisping to sleep with a rear-naked choke to claim a belt in a
second weight class. That return came after nearly four years away,
when St. Pierre initially retired in 2013 after winning 12
welterweight bouts in a row, all but one for a title. Throughout
his career, the Canadian has landed submissions on the likes of
Matt
Hughes, Frank Trigg
and Pete
Spratt, to name a few. Only one man ever tapped him out:
Hughes, and St. Pierre went on to avenge the loss by knocking out
and later submitting Hughes in their rematch and rubber match,
respectively.
The 45-year-old Maia hung up his gloves after a decision loss to
Belal
Muhammad in 2021. Although later passed by Charles
Oliveira, at one time, Maia held the UFC record for the most
submissions ever performed. The man from Sao Paulo, Brazil, still
celebrates the top spot for rear-naked chokes in the Octagon, with
eight – and Oliveira and Renato
Carneiro both trail him with six each. The last MMA victory for
Maia came against Ben Askren,
as he ran roughshod over the wrestler before rendering him
unconscious with a rear-naked choke. Maia has never been tapped out
as a professional.
Shortly after this news broke, MMA
Junkie reported that the matchup was not finalized, despite
Maia stating that he would be grappling St. Pierre. The news outlet
mentioned that other opponents are still being discussed, and that
this fight was not official.