When most guys decide to move up in weight, like Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight-turned-welterweight Donald Cerrone, they simply stop cutting a ton of weight and show up on fight night at or near their walk-around weight.
Unless you’re this guy.
But that’s not a recipe for success, according to former 170-pound kingpin Georges St-Pierre, who makes his way back to the Octagon for the first time in four years. While “Rush” has never competed at 185 pounds, he nows considers himself a true middleweight after spending several months preparing.
“When guys try to do this, to go up a weight class, they do it in too short notice,” St-Pierre told ESPN. “They feel like they carry an extra bag on their shoulder. It make them tired.”
St-Pierre was the gold standard when it came to five-round cardio. In fact, the French-Canadian phenom went 25 minutes in his last nine fights, rather effortlessly, before walking away from mixed martial arts (MMA) in late 2013.
No wonder he was burned out.
“I’ve been doing this for a few months,” he continued. “The extra weight, the extra muscle mass is already had, so I’m used to it. I’m walking with it right now and it’s part of myself.”
St-Pierre, 36, will face the largest opponent of his career when the cage door closes this Saturday night (Nov. 4, 2017) inside Madison Square Garden in New York City. Standing across from him will be fellow UFC 217 pay-per-view (PPV) headliner Michael Bisping, a former light heavyweight who cut down to 185 pounds.
25 minutes against a bigger and possibly stronger opponent will be a daunting task.
“The fact that Michael Bisping is the bigger man, the champion, it just excite me,” St-Pierre said. “When people doubt me and tell me I can’t do something, that’s what drive me and excite me. That’s why I’m doing this.”
To find out if he succeeds click here.
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