Montreal's St. Pierre earns rematch with Hughes at UFC 63 in Anaheim

As a fresh-faced fighter in 2004, Montreal's Georges St. Pierre started strongly but was eventually overwhelmed in a first-round submission loss to Matt Hughes.

Nearly two years later, the 25-year-old mixed martial arts fighter known as "Rush" hopes to show Hughes how much he's learned - by taking away his UFC welterweight title.

"I think I will beat him, because I truly believe that I am a better fighter than him," St. Pierre said Monday from New York. "I'm not a rookie any more. I know what to expect, and I'm not worried at all."

St. Pierre will battle the 32-year-old American for the title at UFC 63: Hughes vs. St. Pierre, on Sept. 23 at Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, Calif.

"I hope he's ready," Hughes (41-4-0) said from Bristol, Conn., where the fight was announced. "No one has been able to stop me yet, and I don't see myself giving up the belt any time soon. I'm looking forward to a good fight, but I will still be the UFC welterweight champion."

Their previous match at UFC 50: The War of '04 lasted just four minutes 59 seconds. Hughes, defending his title for the second time since reclaiming it, locked an armbar on St. Pierre (12-1-0), forcing the Canadian to tap out with just one second left in the first round.

St. Pierre says he won't make the same mistake this time.

"I think I'm a lot better than I was when I fought him the first time, and I sure don't forget about what he did to me the first time," said St. Pierre, one of the co-trainers for the reality show The Ultimate Fighter 4 which begins airing Aug. 17 on Spike TV.

"I've improved everything. I'm getting a lot better."

Since the loss to Hughes - his first in the Octagon - the Canadian has won his last four bouts, including a split decision over B.J. Penn - the man that ended Hughes' first title run at UFC 46: Supernatural.

"He's very well-rounded," Hughes said of St. Pierre. "Me having the wrestling background, I've always had that going for me. But Georges is well-rounded, he can fight everywhere.

"This could be one of those fights that could go 30 seconds, or it could go 25 minutes."
Hughes is coming off an impressive win over Royce Gracie.

"Every fighter has a toolbox, and right now mine is full," he said. "I have a lot of things that I can do, I have a lot of ways I can win. And Georges has a very full toolbox as well."

Should St. Pierre win the bout, his profile would soar even higher - which should benefit Canadian UFC fans. The rapidly growing organization has yet to host a pay-per-view card north of the border, but St. Pierre believes that might change if he beats Hughes.

"I think if I become champion, I'm going to try to put some pressure on (UFC) to put a card in Canada," said St. Pierre. "I'm going to try to make it happen. I'd love to fight in front of a Canadian crowd."

Notes: A second fight has been added to UFC 62: Liddell vs. Sobral, set for Aug. 26 at Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas. Forrest Griffin, winner of the original The Ultimate Fighter series, will battle Stephan Bonnar in a rematch of their entertaining TUF 1 showdown. The main event features Chuck (The Iceman) Liddell defending his light-heavyweight crown against Renato (Babalu) Sobral.

(Source: Canoe.ca)