Georges St-Pierre who has not fought since beating Jake Shields in early 2011. He had knee surgery and underwent a long rehab, but has now been cleared to fight, via Facebook.
Georges St-Pierre
Yesterday was the final chapter of my Road to Recovery- I’m now medically cleared to compete in professional mixed martial arts! Big thanks to all my fans for the amazing support during those 9 long months of rehab- couldn’t have done it without you. Also special thanks to Dr. ElAttrache and Heather at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic + Gavin MacMillan at Sport Science Lab. I’ve been so lucky to work with such professional and kind people and I’ve learned a lot from them. It’s been an incredible experience. Rendez-vous le 17 novembre, UFC 154, Montréal!!!
GSP faces interim UFC welterweight champion Carlos Condit at UFC 154 on November 17. Trainer Firas Zahabi today told MMAjunkie.com a sparring session on Saturday decided the return announcement, and that the fight could break PPV records.
“We said if the day goes well, we’re going to do it,” said Zahabi. “And everything went well.”
“He did it as professionally as possible. He got the best people to help him every step. Even when he was feeling good and he felt like he could train, the doctor’s told him he should not train, and he didn’t train. He followed doctor’s orders, and it was really hard.
“He really took it from A to Z the way they told him to do it, so if it didn’t work out, it wasn’t meant to be. But I really believe that if somebody got out of an ACL injury the way Georges did it, it’s going to give him the best chances.”
“Does it ruin careers? Yes, sometimes it does,” Zahabi said of St-Pierre knee injury. “If Georges is going to be one of those guys, we’ll find out in November.”
“Carlos is a very specific style of fighter. His standup is very unique, and we want to replicate that as soon as possible because it’s not something that you get used to quickly. You need to get accustomed to it. He’s got these really weird combinations: flying knees, scissor kicks, these weird combinations that throw you off your feet.”
“Georges has faced other good standup fighters, but not that kind of style. That style is all about breaking the rhythm; it’s all about surprising you with a strange combination. He doesn’t repeat himself very often during fights, so he keeps you guessing.”
“I think he’ll break a record when he comes back,” Zahabi said. “I think GSP fans are going to be interested in watching him make his return and see how the story turns out.
“It’s really difficult coming back from an injury. It’s not something you just do. You’ve got to go through the emotional part, the psychological aspect, and the physical. They’re all equally hard, and I think it’s going to bring his value up because his fights are so scarce.”
