MMA legend Georges St-Pierre is not a fan of a common strategy the UFC matchmakers employ when booking fights.
St-Pierre is considered one of the greatest MMA fighters ever. He spent most of his career competing at welterweight, where he was the long-time UFC champion. The Canadian briefly retired after defending his title for the 10th time against Johny Hendricks in 2013, but returned to action in 2018, claiming the UFC middleweight belt with a submission win over Michael Bisping.
He never fought again.
Needless to say St-Pierre retired on his terms, sticking around only for the fights that made sense for him. He believes other aging fighters should do the same.
Oftentimes, the UFC will book older fighters against young, hungry fighters in passing of the torch style matchups. It rarely goes well for the older fighter. Some prime examples include Frankie Edgar losing to Chris Gutierrez, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua losing to Ihor Potieria, and most recently Anthony Smith losing to Zhang Mingyang — all by stoppage. There are exceptions to the rule, like Robbie Lawler’s epic retirement KO of Niko Price, but more often than not, the younger fighter spoils the swan song.
“There’s something that you cannot beat, it’s time… They tell you pass the torch. Fuck that. Don’t pass the torch. Retire on your turn, not on their turn. It’s a selfish sport and you have to be selfish… When you feel it’s time to retire, retire.”@GeorgesStPierre on when… pic.twitter.com/L2nSalP2Uj
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 28, 2025
