We won’t be seeing Kamaru Usman vs. Georges St-Pierre anytime soon.
Following his UFC Welterweight title fight against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 251, Usman said that he would love to fight Georges St-Pierre for the prestigious belt; however, while the former two-division champion respects the accomplishments that Usman has made inside of the octagon, St-Pierre just doesn’t have any interest in stepping into the octagon against him:
“For me, it’s very complimentary because for a fighter the goal is to work—And not only for a fighter, but the goal is to do as less work possible to gain the most money,” St-Pierre said in an interview with TMZ. “They know that a fight with me will give them a lot of money and plus if they win they can have the legacy that comes with it.
But for my part it’s a mixed feeling. For sure, sometimes I’m watching the fight and I’m like, ‘Man, I think I can beat these guys.’ Or after when I’m done training I feel like I’m very confident. But then after I go home at night and I’m thinking about all that crazy thoughts I’m like, I’m gonna be 40 years old soon.
“Do I really want to go back into a hardcore training camp, two months, put myself in jail so to speak and getting ready for hell? And I’m like, no I don’t. I’ve done it for a very long time and unfortunately in my sport there’s too many guys that retired too late and I do not want to be one of these guys. I’m very fortunate. I’m healthy, most importantly, and I’m also wealthy. I came at the right time, the right timing, I made a lot of money, and I think when I measured and calculated the pros and cons it’s better that I stay retired.”
While St-Pierre has no desire to get inside of the octagon, the former UFC Welterweight Champion shares his respect for the reigning 170-champion:
“I think for me it’s better if I stay retired and I have other big projects right now,” he continued. “I still stay a big fan of the sport, I love to watch Kamaru, I love to watch all the best guys in the sport. ... I saw the fight, he’s amazing. What a great fight. He’s very, very smart. Everybody talks about his physical abilities and his skills, but I think what his best attribute is his brain. He’s very, very smart. He’s very good at becoming the perfect nemesis for his opponent. He fought almost a perfect fight. He’s an amazing fighter and he’s gonna go far, he’s gonna be one of the best if he keeps going like that.”