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Georges St-Pierre is the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. I know how that sounds. That's a big title to give someone. But it's true. He walks away from the sport, at 37 years young, unlike most in the fight game: He walks away on top. He walks away as a former two-weight world champion. GSP, as he's known, lost twice, but he ended up avenging those losses in the most dominant ways possible. He also won 26 times. He never failed a drug test. He never embarrassed himself, the sport or his country. There's no cloud hanging over his legacy, only titles and records. St-Pierre has the most wins in UFC title fights (13), the most takedowns landed all time (90), the most significant strikes landed in welterweight history (1,254) ... and the list goes on and on. If you want to call me biased, that's fine. I fully admit that GSP is the reason why I decided to cover MMA for a living. I am a proud Montrealer. I support my own. And when GSP fought Matt Hughes for a second time in hopes of finally winning the welterweight title at UFC 65, I convinced some friends to go to a local Montreal sports bar to watch history unfold. This was more than 12 years ago. MMA was nowhere near as popular as it is today, so you can imagine how shocked I was when I saw a line of people wrapped around the block, waiting to enter the same bar to witness our fellow Montrealer finally climb the mountaintop. I had no idea the moment meant so much to so many people. GSP beat Hughes that night, and I'll never forget the way that bar erupted in joy. Honestly, it was like the Habs had just won another Stanley Cup. That night I decided I wanted to cover this sport for a living.  So thank you, GSP. Thank you for all the title defenses. Thank you for making history. Thank you for representing Canada and this sport with dignity and class until the very end. I'm sad to see you go, but I'm genuinely happy you're walking out on your terms. After all, that's what GOATs do.
Merci, Georges.
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