Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
the decision of Georges St Pierre in giving up his belt and stepping away from fights for an indefinite period of time, he gained support from two of the UFC's main fighters. Anderson Silva, former middleweight champion and record holder for title defenses in the organization, declared that he respected the Canadian for having had the courage to take such a measure.
In a UFC telephone press conference, “Spider” said that the fighter is the only one capable of deciding his professional future. “I think everyone knows what they are going through and what the right time is. I have to respect Georges St Pierre for everything he did in the sport. If he thinks it’s the right time, we have to respect it”, commented the former champion.
Ronda Rousey, champion of the women's bantamweight division, highlighted the level of pressure a fighter goes through every time they step into the Octagon. “If you use fighting as a way of life, you fight for your life every time you step into the octagon. It's a stressful situation. The worst thing that can happen is not that you will be fired, but that you will be physically injured, or have your psychological side damaged. You face stress all the time”, pointed out the fighter.
“Georges just broke the record for time spent in the octagon. So who can blame him for feeling the way he did? If he wanted to fight more, great, let him fight. But if he thinks it's over, that's fine. Go rest, you deserve it. You no longer need to risk your life”, added the champion.
Anderson Silva e Ronda Rousey are highlights of the last UFC event to be held in 2013. The first faces Chris Weidman to try to regain the middleweight belt, while the second defends its title against Miesha Tate.
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