On this day in 2013: Georges St-Pierre defeated Nick Diaz in what ended up being his final fight in Montreal
It has been 10 years since Georges St-Pierre and Nick Diaz competed inside the octagon for the UFC welterweight championship.
It was a highly anticipated bout as Diaz was a fan-favorite who was known for his relentless pace and striking, while St-Pierre had cemented himself as the greatest welterweight champion in UFC history at that point. The bout also marked the final time that 'GSP' competed in his hometown of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
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#OnThisDay in 2013,
UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre defeated No. 1 contender Nick Diaz by unanimous decision in the main event of UFC 158 🔥🥵
The five-round battle went down at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
#UFC #MMA | @ufc https://t.co/THH5P4LuWZ
Despite coming off a loss to Carlos Condit in an interim welterweight title fight, Diaz received a title shot because a fight against 'Rush' was what had originally been planned when he returned to the promotion in 2011. But after not showing up for his media obligations, the bout was scrapped and he instead fought BJ Penn. After defeating the former two-division champion, he famously called out 'GSP', who was sitting cageside, by saying, 'Where you at, Georges?'
St-Pierre executed his gameplan perfectly as he was able to use his wrestling to neutralize the Stockton native and earned a unanimous decision win after all three judges scored the bout 50-45 in his favor. It was his eighth consecutive title defense and he would retain his title once more against Johny Hendricks, before taking a hiatus from the sport.
How many UFC fights did Georges St-Pierre have in Canada?
Apr30.2011
The UFC holds its Largest Event in History,
with 55,724 fans @ the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada http://t.co/385HSjAyh8
Georges St-Pierre was one of the biggest stars in the UFC throughout his career, so it's no surprise that the promotion had him headline many events in Canada.
During his UFC career, 'Rush' competed in Canada on 5 occasions and each event was special for different reasons. The first event saw him avenge his loss to Matt Serra and regain the UFC welterweight championship. His final fight in Canada saw him retain his title against former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz.
The biggest event the 'GSP' headlined was UFC 129, which took place at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was the promotion's debut event in Toronto after the province of Ontario legalized MMA, and so they booked their first North and only North American stadium event at the city's historic venue.
St-Pierre earned a unanimous decision win over former Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields in the main event. The event was a success as there were 55,000+ fans in attendance and generated 800,000 pay-per-view buys.