Last night, in the main event of the stacked UFC 217, Canada’s Georges St-Pierre returned from a hiatus of four years to battle UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping. Despite the length of his layoff, St-Pierre looked every bit an MMA great in his comeback fight, submitting Bisping with a third-round rear-naked choke to capture the middleweight crown.
Unsurprisingly, this was a big moment for Canadian fight fans, who generally regard St-Pierre as something of a deity. Even Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was excited by St-Pierre’s win, issuing a quick statement on Twitter to congratulate the new UFC middleweight champion.
Félicitations Georges! Like you never left. You’ve made us proud once again. 🇨🇦 https://t.co/eK1GA5w2og
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) November 5, 2017
“Congratulations Georges,” Trudeau said. “Like you never left. You’ve made us proud again.”
This bout was St-Pierre’s first since a 2013 decision win over Johny Hendricks. With this win, the Canadian legend moved onto a 13-fight win-streak, and assumed an overall record of 26-2. With Bisping in the rear-view, St-Pierre is expected to defend his new title opposite Australian destroyer Robert Whittaker. That said, the prospect of a long-awaited superfight between St-Pierre and Anderson Silva will undoubtedly be an alluring prospect to the money fight obsessed UFC brass.
Who do you want to see Georges St-Pierre fight next?
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 5/11/2017.