St-Pierre vows to rock Bell Centre

RANDY PHILLIPS
The Gazette
Thursday, March 27, 2008

Ultimate fighter Georges St-Pierre is a mama's boy, but only when it comes to his stomach.

"My favourite food is tourtière, a French-Canadian meal," St-Pierre said. "My mother makes the best tourtière in the world." Tourtière is one thing St-Pierre, 26, has had to put on the back burner as he gears up for the fight of his career.

On April 19 at the Bell Centre, the Montreal native, nicknamed Rush, will face American Matt (Terror) Serra in Ultimate Fighting Championship's UFC 83: Serra vs. St-Pierre 2 to determine the undisputed champion in the 170-pound welterweight division.

The rematch between titleholder Serra and St-Pierre - the "interim champion" because Serra was unable to defend his title before the end of last year after suffering a back injury - will highlight the first UFC event in Canada. With a sellout crowd in excess of 21,000, it will be the largest live audience in UFC history.

St-Pierre said the opportunity to fight in front of a hometown crowd was the best scenario he could have wished for and vowed to take full advantage.

"I'm at my best when I'm fighting under pressure because it keeps in mind what is on the line," he said. "It keeps me sharp. I will be at the top of my game, better than I was for my last fight. My training partners will tell you that. I'm getting more skills and more tools." St-Pierre, working out at the Tristar Montreal MMA Club yesterday, gave the media a chance to see what training is like for a professional in mixed martial arts - a violent and sometimes bloody sport even he knows isn't for everyone.

At 5-foot-10 and 185 pounds, St-Pierre is ripped after countless hours training for a fighting style that makes use of techniques from boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai - also known as "the art of the eight limbs" which demands strikes using eight points of contact, as opposed to two points (hands) in boxing, or four (hands and feet) as in traditional martial arts.

"I'm always working to elevate the skills for each discipline," St-Pierre said.

The Gazette (Montreal) 2008

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Latest GSB Blog entry...

March 14, 2008 @ 5:00 PM

I'm on my flight back from Alburquerque. My training camp was great! I am returning as a better fighter than when I arrived earlier this week. I'm in great shape with no injuries and my mental preperation has never been better. I want to thank my coach, Greg Jackson, and all my training partners in Albuquerque and Denver. Even though I'm returning home to snow and cold weather, I can't wait to be home.

GSP's recent blog entry

March 10, 2008 @ 9:05 AM

"I must apologize for my lack of blog updates lately. I've been focused on training and being totally prepared for my fight in April that I've hardly had any free time to spend on my computer. But be patient, I'll make an effort to keep you all updated as much as possible.

I'm getting ready to fly to Denver to train with Nate - my original flight was actually yesterday but has been delayed because of yet another winter snow storm in Montreal. From Denver, I'll fly to Albuquerque where I'll meet up with Rashad Evans to train with Greg Jackson's camp for the week. I have my videographer with me for the week so I'll try to shoot some new video clips for my website to share with you all. I'm off to the airport now so I'll blog again soon!"

Jon Fitch calls out GSP!

Fitch: Georges St. Pierre 'afraid to get knocked out!'

With a long-sought-after title shot finally in sight, welterweight Jon Fitch primed the pump for a potential battle with Georges St. Pierre by saying the interim 170-lb. titleholder is afraid of being KO'd.

"The thing I've noticed the most about St. Pierre in his last performances is that he's become a wrestler. Since getting knocked out (by Matt Serra), he's been unwilling to stand and trade. He had an easy win over Matt Hughes in their second fight standing, and, the third fight, for some reason, decided to take the hard road and decide to outwrestle a wrestler. To me, that shows he's afraid to get knocked out."

So much for the mild-mannered Jon Fitch ... got to give the guy credit for sharing some candid insight and taking the first swing in preparation for fight that many fans want to see.

Fitch - a winner of 15 straight fights - made the comments following his less-than-impressive victory over Chris Wilson at UFC 82.

(Source: Brawl Sports)

UFC 83 Website

UFC 83 website is up!

83.ufc.com

UFC 83 Promo