Hang a 75-pound weight from his waist and Georges St-Pierre will happily do one chin-up after another.
Robinson Cano Jersey . The mixed martial arts star never takes a step back, always looking for an edge, be it working with
elite gymnasts or sprinters. But St-Pierres biggest strength is also his biggest
weakness. "Im completely obsessed," he said of the way he approaches each fight.
When a grain of doubt enters his mind, the beast in the gym becomes brittle. And
on Friday, a shopping list of distractions finally took their toll on one of
Canadas most famous athletes. Citing the pressures of being champion and of
being in a constant limelight, St-Pierre said his life has become "completely
insane" and a "freaking zoo." Admitting he was no longer up for the rigours of
fighting in a cage, the UFCs pay-per-view king vacated his welterweight title
and announced a hiatus from the sport. St-Pierre (25-2) also cited personal
issues, which he declined to detail. But clearly they have obscured his
obsessive focus in a sport whose athletes spend months preparing for fights.
"Physically Im 100 per cent, Im still young, Im on top of the world," the
32-year-old from Montreal told a media conference call. "But mentally I just
feel like I cannot go through another training camp right now and I dont know
when I will be able to." UFC president Dana White said No. 1 contender Johny
(Bigg Rigg) Hendricks will fight No. 3 (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler for the title on
March 15 in Dallas. "I think this is the right move for Georges St-Pierre," said
White. "You can hear by listening to him hes got a lot of issues personally that
he needs to deal with." St-Pierre had cast doubt about his future last month
following UFC 167, a controversial split decision win over Hendricks, when he
said he needed time away from the sport to sort out some personal issues. That
enraged White, who did not like the idea of one of his biggest assets walking
away -- especially in the aftermath of a controversial decision. But White
calmed down after talking to St-Pierre later that night. And on Friday, he
continued to downplay the drama. "At the end of the day, its really not that big
of a deal. The guys got some things that he needs to deal with. He was classy
enough to say Im not going to jam up the 170-pound division while I deal with
these things, Im going to step aside and handle myself and then Ill be back." In
the wake of the Hendricks fight, a TMZ report said the champion was dealing with
a family illness and a personal issue. White later told The Canadian Press that
St-Pierre had told him the report was not true. St-Pierre loosened up during
Fridays call, joking with reporters that they were not going to get anything
personal from him. "Im going to take a break. I need this," he said Friday. "I
need to have a normal life for a bit. Ill feel better and come back stronger."
Having a normal life was a theme repeated throughout the conference call. Asked
what he wants to get away from, St-Pierre said he loves his sport. "As much as I
choose to do it, now I choose to not do it." He said he expects to be back,
although he sounded far from certain. "I dont know when, I dont know if, I think
I will (be back) I cant say 100 per cent. But right now I just dont want people
thinking about me." Press tours, cameras and trash-talking were some of the
things he said he needed to avoid. St-Pierre was somewhat vague about a
comeback. "I believe one day I will come back. The problem is I dont know how
long (I will be away)." He said he has already conquered Everest three times
before, when he lost to Matt Hughes (in 2004) and Matt (The Terror) Serra (in
2007) and when he came back (in 2012) from knee surgery. "And if I have to do a
fourth time, believe me, I feel like Im, going to do it." White, who explained
GSPs UFC contract was considered frozen, said he believed St-Pierre will be
back. St-Pierre exits ranked second to light-heavyweight champion Jon (Bones)
Jones in the UFCs pound-for-pound rankings. White called St-Pierre "the greatest
welterweight ever" and "the gold standard in everything." "And as far as working
with us, theres nobody better. If I had 475 guys like Georges St-Pierre, my life
would be a lot easier." A gentleman outside the cage who shares little of his
personal life, St-Pierre has always taken his responsibilities seriously. In
2008, he missed an interview session with a visiting reporter who was left
standing outside a Montreal gym. His manager at the time advised that St-Pierre
had suffered a minor injury earlier in the day and had forgotten about his
interview with the reporter. The journalist told the manager not to worry, given
they had already had a previously scheduled appointment for the next day.
St-Pierre, however, had a different idea. He drove to the gym to collect the
reporter and took him out for dinner to do the interview. Then he drove the
reporter to his hotel, apologizing again for having been late. While other
fighters wore T-shirts and sweats, St-Pierre -- taking a page from some champion
boxers -- always wore a suit for his post-fight news conferences. St-Pierre, who
said he will keep training, has no need to fight again. He has made millions and
made a point of looking after his family when the cheques started coming in. One
of his first duties as champion was to pay off the mortgages of his parents and
sisters. The UFC is wasting no time getting round to the post-GSP era. Carlos
Condit is currently ranked No. 2 among welterweight contenders but he has lost
to both St-Pierre and Hendricks. And White noted that Lawler just beat Canadian
contender and GSP training partner Rory (Ares) MacDonald. "Not to mention the
fact that theres not doubt that the Robbie Lawler-Johny Hendricks fight is going
to be an absolute gunfight." White said Condit may also be on the Dallas card.
Condit was previously due to fight Matt (The Immortal) Brown until Brown was
sidelined by a back injury. As champion, St-Pierre has worn a target on his back
since he first won the title in 2006. "The situation Im at, its a lot of
pressure," he said. "Its like every fight Im carrying weight on my shoulder.
Every fight, its like you add weight on your shoulder. Every fight. "At one
point it comes so heavy that I have a hard time carrying it myself." St-Pierre
has survived turmoil throughout his career. He lost his championship belt in his
first title defence before winning it back. And he has endured a string of
injuries, including knee reconstruction surgery in December 2011. That prompted
the UFC to pit Condit against Nick Diaz for the interim title. Condit won but
was beaten by St-Pierre when the champion returned to action at UFC 154 in
November 2012. St-Pierre was the first Canadian to hold a UFC title since Carlos
(Ronin) Newton, who held the welterweight crown for seven months in 2001 before
losing it to Matt Hughes. St-Pierre lost to Hughes, now a member of the UFC Hall
of Fame, in a title bout at UFC 50 in 2004 but won the rematch at UFC 65 in
November 2006 to claim the championship belt. His initial reign at champion was
short-lived. Beset by family illness and lacking focus, GSP was upset by Matt
(The Terror) Serra in his first title defence at UFC 69 in April 2007. GSP
fights as he prepares. A good camp equals a good performance. He paid a heavy
price for a bad one. St-Pierre retooled, changing his management and revamping
his coaching staff. "I truly believe that this loss is probably the best thing
that ever happened to me," he said at the time. At the suggestion of a sports
psychologist, he carried a brick around with Serras name inscribed on it. Then
he threw it in the chilly waters of Montreals South Shore to bury the memory of
the Serra loss. St-Pierre has not lost since. He won his title back from Serra
three fights later in commanding fashion, at UFC 83 in Montreal in April 2008.
The decision over Hendricks was a record 19th win in the UFC for St-Pierre,
moving him past Hughes at 18. It also extended his string of victories to 12,
the longest current run in the UFC. The Hendricks victory also moved GSP past
former middleweight champion Anderson Silva for most wins in UFC title bouts at
12. St-Pierre holds the record for career fight time in the UFC at five hours 28
minutes 12 seconds. He also owns the UFC mark for most championship rounds
fought (52). UFC 167 was St-Pierres 14th championship fight, one behind Randy
Couture. St-Pierre also leads the UFC records in total strikes landed,
significant strikes landed, takedowns landed and takedown accuracy rate,
according to FightMetric. "Im content," he said of his legacy. St-Pierre is not
the first UFC champion to give up their title. Tim Sylvia voluntarily gave up
the heavyweight championship belt in 2003 when he tested positive for steroids,
which was a pre-emptive strike to being stripped. Bas Rutten gave up his
heavyweight title in 1999 to campaign as a light-heavyweight. Injuries forced
him to retire soon after. Frank Shamrock voluntarily vacated his title in 1999
and retired, although he later returned to action outside the UFC.
Luis Sardinas Mariners Jersey . Costa injured his right thigh muscle against Barcelona last Saturday and had sought treatment
in Belgrade from a doctor specializing in using fluid derived from horse
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Hisashi Iwakuma Jersey . - Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte sees the commitment to the handoff and cant help but
come away impressed.The Winnipeg Goldeyes bats went silent on Wednesday night
and now the Fish find themselves in a fight to hold on to first place. The
Goldeyes dropped a doubleheader to the St. Paul Saints on Wednesday in front of
5,936 spectators at Shaw Park and as a result, the Goldeyes are now in a battle
for first place in the American Associations North Division. Not long ago the
Fish had an 9 1/2 game lead on St. Paul, but after losing the opener of the Twin
Bill 5-2, then dropping the night cap 4-0, the Goldeyes find themselves only 3
1/2 games ahead of the Saints with a huge game coming up against St. Paul on
Thursday at Noon. "You know, in the second game we hit the ball pretty well, but
it was one of those games when everything you hit hard is right at somebody,"
said Goldeyes shortstop Tyler Kuhn. "Actually, their pitchers did a real good
job in both games of pounding the strike zone. They didnt give up many free
passes (only four walks in two games, none in Game 2) and that makes it tough.
They pitched really well." With the loss, the Fish fell to 36-22 on the season
while St. Paul improved to 32-25. The Goldeyes had won 11 straight in late June
and early July, but in the first 10 games of an 11-game homestand, the Goldeyes
have now gone 2-8. In the second game of the doubleheaderr on Wednesday night,
the Goldeyes couldnt muster any offense.
Kyle Seager Mariners Jersey. They scratched out five hits and had runners in scoring position only twice. St. Paul scored a
run in the third, one more in the fourth and then put it away with a
bases-loaded single by No. 8-hitter Jared McDonald that drove in a pair of runs.
St. Paul starter Jeff Shields (5-4, 2.96 ERA) pitched a complete-game shutout
and earned the win while Goldeyes starter Gabe Aguilar (5-2, 3.03 ERA) suffered
the loss. In the opener, the Goldeyes built an early 2-0 lead, but couldnt hold
on. In the second inning, Donnie Webb singled, stole second and scored on a
single by Reggie Abercrombie. After a ground out and a walk, Abercrombie scored
on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Tyler Kuhn. But St. Paul battled back to tie
it up in the fifth and then Jake Taylor won it with a three-run homer off Nick
Hernandez in the sixth. St. Paul starter Drew Gay (3-0, 2.65 ERA) got the win,
while Hernandez (5-2, 4.03 ERA) took the loss. Mikey Mehlich picked up his first
save of the year for the Saints. The Goldeyes and Saints will play the fifth and
final game of this series at Noon on Thursday. Ethan Hollingsworth (3-0, 4.55
ERA) will get the start for Winnipeg while Robert Coe (4-4, 6.75 ERA) will take
to the bump for St. Paul.
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