Georges St-Pierre: Reebok deal could stop UFC from bringing me back

Georges St-Pierre still hasn't confirmed his return to mixed martial arts (MMA), despite rumblings of a looming six-week training camp.

But now there seems to be a big obstacle in the way of "Rush" ever stepping foot inside the cage, as St-Pierre says the deal Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has with Reebok may halt his comeback.

And not necessarily from his end, either, as "GSP" revealed on The MMA Hour that the specifics of the contract between the two companies could potentially prevent UFC from ever welcoming him back.

Because at the end of the day, his contract is unique.

"Look, I don't know the Reebok deal," he said. "My contract is different. I'm lucky, I have a great team of management behind me. I cannot comment on that because of sponsor issues and things like that. My contract is different than most people."

When asked if the deal would ultimately stop him from going back to work for his former employer, the French-Canadian said it wasn't necessarily a deal breaker for him. If anything, it's UFC who could have an issue.

"It could stop maybe UFC from having me come back," he concluded.

Georges wouldn't comment further on the issue, as he says it's his job is to compete and it's the job of his management team to go toe-to-toe with UFC officials on matters such as sponsorship, legal, and business rights.

The Reebok deal hasn't gone over too well with most of the UFC roster. Aside from receiving a small portion of the proceeds (see them here), fighters have reportedly lost thousands of dollars after some of their respective sponsors had no choice but to drop them.

It's no secret St-Pierre is a blue chip sponsor magnet, as he holds deals with Gatorade, Under Armour, and NOS Energy Drink, just to name a few. Of course, it's safe to assume his income from those companies grows exponentially once their products are plastered all over the television during a pay-per-view (PPV) event.

Something that is no longer allowed under UFC's deal with Reebok.