Latest news with #GeorgesSt-Pierre
USA Today
12-08-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Georges St-Pierre skeptical of what killing PPV could mean for UFC fighters
One of the biggest stars of his era, UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre knows just how important the pay-per-view model was to his earning potential financially during his illustrious career. And with the impending UFC-Paramount era signaling the death of pay-per-view, he isn't so sure it's a good thing for the fighters. 'It could be good for the UFC as a promoter, terrible for the fighters," St-Pierre told Covers. The UFC and Paramount on Monday announced a massive seven-year, $7.7 billion broadcast deal that begins in 2026. It gives Paramount exclusive rights to the UFC's 43 annual events, including 13 "marquee" numbered events, which will be available to anyone with a Paramount+ subscription, effectively ending the pay-per-view model that's been integral to the UFC's business since its inception in 1993. While the change has been viewed as a positive for fans who no longer have to pay $79.99 for a UFC pay-per-view, there's still no clarity on what it means for fighters, especially champions and select big names who've been used to receiving a cut of pay-per-view sales as part their contracts. During his UFC welterweight championship reign from 2008 to 2013, St-Pierre largely carried the promotion on his back as its top draw, with UFC president Dana White in 2011 declaring him "by far the biggest pay-per-view star in mixed martial arts." Speaking from experience, St-Pierre simply wonders how top fighters, who otherwise would've earned pay-per-view points, will be able to do business with the UFC moving forward. "When I was competing, I was able to have a great argument to negotiate on my contract,' St-Pierre said. 'I could tell the UFC, 'Hey, if you want me to do all the promotion, I want to become a partner. I want a piece of the pie to negotiate a part of the pay-per-view revenue. Because if I'm doing all the promotion, I'm helping you, but you need to help me. You need to make me a partner.' So it might be a bad thing for the fighters in a way that they have less leverage. ... 'That's what I think. I think it's going to take off some leverage for the big names to have an argument to negotiate more money.' Fellow UFC Hall of Famer Chris Weidman predicts there will be "bigger guaranteed payouts" for UFC champions." Whether that ultimately happens remains to be seen and even then, fighters might not know if it truly offsets what they could've earned through direct cuts of pay-per-view sales.
Montreal Gazette
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Montreal Gazette
Quebec UFC legend Georges St-Pierre to share his life story on stage
TORONTO — Former UFC champion Georges St-Pierre wants to share his story. From being bullied as a child to holding down three jobs while going to college. And the stress and challenges he faced in his rise to being a two-division mixed martial arts champion. The 44-year-old native of St-Isidore, who is a member of the Canada Sports Hall of Fame and UFC Hall of Fame, will debut GSP: The Instinct of a Champion at Toronto's Meridian Hall on Sept. 29 with other Canadian dates to follow in 2026. The hope is to then take the show to the U.S. and other countries. St-Pierre is no stranger to speaking publicly, having made plenty of speeches to corporate and other gatherings. The speaking tour will take the form of a live interview, followed by an audience Q-and-A. 'I will explain how I deal with fear, with stress. Background stories. Different protocol and tricks that I used throughout my career,' St-Pierre said from Thailand, where he is filming a reality show to air next year on Netflix. He believes the September show will work for fans and those who hope to learn something that they can apply to their lives. 'A lot of what I do is always oriented towards the art of war — in terms of performance, how to be the best. And to be able to reach the top,' he explained. St-Pierre officially retired in 2019 with a 26-2 record, having won the middleweight title in his last fight at UFC 217 in 2017. He previously was the longtime welterweight champion. Sharing his story was difficult at first, he acknowledged. 'Now time has passed and I can talk about a lot of things in my life that I was not so comfortable to talk about when I was younger,' he said. 'Things like my dad when he was drinking and how it would affect me. Because when he quit drinking, he became my No. 1 inspiration. I saw how hard it was (for him). 'So everything started negative in the beginning, but then later it became a positive thing, because it became an inspiration for me. When he made that sacrifice (forgoing alcohol), it really reunited my family and it bound us back together. It's something that had a huge impact on my life. … I feel very lucky and very privileged to have a great role model.' St-Pierre comes from humble beginnings on Montreal's South Shore. His father spent more than 60 hours a week on a floor-recovering business, installing carpet and ceramics. His mother nursed the elderly. St-Pierre earned his own floor-recovering certificate before making it big in MMA. Tony Gattillo, the Montreal-based producer of the show, believes St-Pierre's story can serve as inspiration. 'I think people will leave the show very motivated and will want to apply certain things that Georges is going to share … for the first time. And motivate the people,' said Gattillo, a former singer who works behind the scenes in the entertainment industry. 'And help them realize that if you want to be a champion in your life or you want to reach a certain goal, there is hard work to do. There's dedication. There's discipline. And mental toughness.' When St-Pierre entered the modern wing of the UFC Hall of Fame in 2020, he was one of seven UFC fighters to win a title in two weight classes. He retired on a 13-fight win streak with a record that included 13 title fight victories, the second most in UFC history, and boasted the most strikes landed (2,591), most significant ground strikes landed (461) and most takedowns (90).
Hamilton Spectator
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Former UFC champion Georges St-Pierre looks to share his story on stage
TORONTO - Former UFC champion Georges St-Pierre wants to share his story. From being bullied as a child to holding down three jobs while going to college. And the stress and challenges he faced in his rise to being a two-division mixed martial arts champion. The 44-year-old St-Pierre, a native of Saint-Isidore, Que., who is a member of both the Canada Sports Hall of Fame and UFC Hall of Fame, will debut 'GSP: The Instinct of a Champion' at Toronto's Meridian Hall on Sept. 29 with other Canadian dates to follow in 2026. The hope is to then take the show to the U.S. and other countries. St-Pierre is no stranger to speaking publicly, having made plenty of speeches to corporate and other gatherings. The speaking tour will take the form of a live interview, followed by an audience Q-and-A. 'I will explain how I deal with fear, with stress. Background stories. Different protocol and tricks that I used throughout my career,' St-Pierre said from Thailand where he currently filming a reality show to air next year on Netflix. He believes the September show will work for both fans and those who hope to learn something that they can apply to their own lives. 'A lot of what I do is always oriented towards the art of war — in terms of performance, how to be the best. And to be able to reach the top,' he explained. St-Pierre officially retired in February 2019 with a 26-2-0 record, having won the middleweight title in his last fight at UFC 217 in November 2017. He previously was the longtime welterweight champion. Sharing his story was difficult at first, he acknowledges. 'Now time has passed and I can talk about a lot of things in my life that I was not so comfortable to talk about when I was younger,' he said. 'Things like my dad when he was drinking and how it would affect me. Because when he quit drinking, he became my No. 1 inspiration. I saw how hard it was (for him). 'So everything started negative in the beginning but then later it became a positive thing, because it became an inspiration for me. When he made that sacrifice (forgoing alcohol), it really reunited my family and it bound us back together. It's something that had a huge impact on my life … I feel very lucky and very privileged to have a great role model.' St-Pierre comes from humble beginnings on Montreal's South Shore. His father spent more than 60 hours a week on a floor-recovering business, installing carpet and ceramics. His mother nursed the elderly. St-Pierre earned his own floor-recovering certificate before making it big in MMA. Tony Gattillo, the Montreal-based producer of the show, believes St-Pierre's story can serve as inspiration. 'I think people will leave the show very motivated and will want to apply certain things that Georges is going to share … for the first time. And motivate the people,' said Gattillo, a former singer now working behind the scenes in the entertainment industry. 'And help them realize that if you want to be a champion in your life or you want to reach a certain goal, there is hard work to do. There's dedication. There's discipline. And mental toughness.' When St-Pierre entered the modern wing of the UFC Hall of Fame in 2020, he was one of seven UFC fighters to win a title in two weight classes. He retired on a 13-fight win streak with a record that included 13 title fight victories, the second most in UFC history, and boasted the most strikes landed (2,591), most significant ground strikes landed (461) and most takedowns (90). —- This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 10, 2025
Winnipeg Free Press
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Former UFC champion Georges St-Pierre looks to share his story on stage
TORONTO – Former UFC champion Georges St-Pierre wants to share his story. From being bullied as a child to holding down three jobs while going to college. And the stress and challenges he faced in his rise to being a two-division mixed martial arts champion. The 44-year-old St-Pierre, a native of Saint-Isidore, Que., who is a member of both the Canada Sports Hall of Fame and UFC Hall of Fame, will debut 'GSP: The Instinct of a Champion' at Toronto's Meridian Hall on Sept. 29 with other Canadian dates to follow in 2026. The hope is to then take the show to the U.S. and other countries. St-Pierre is no stranger to speaking publicly, having made plenty of speeches to corporate and other gatherings. The speaking tour will take the form of a live interview, followed by an audience Q-and-A. 'I will explain how I deal with fear, with stress. Background stories. Different protocol and tricks that I used throughout my career,' St-Pierre said from Thailand where he currently filming a reality show to air next year on Netflix. He believes the September show will work for both fans and those who hope to learn something that they can apply to their own lives. 'A lot of what I do is always oriented towards the art of war — in terms of performance, how to be the best. And to be able to reach the top,' he explained. St-Pierre officially retired in February 2019 with a 26-2-0 record, having won the middleweight title in his last fight at UFC 217 in November 2017. He previously was the longtime welterweight champion. Sharing his story was difficult at first, he acknowledges. 'Now time has passed and I can talk about a lot of things in my life that I was not so comfortable to talk about when I was younger,' he said. 'Things like my dad when he was drinking and how it would affect me. Because when he quit drinking, he became my No. 1 inspiration. I saw how hard it was (for him). 'So everything started negative in the beginning but then later it became a positive thing, because it became an inspiration for me. When he made that sacrifice (forgoing alcohol), it really reunited my family and it bound us back together. It's something that had a huge impact on my life … I feel very lucky and very privileged to have a great role model.' St-Pierre comes from humble beginnings on Montreal's South Shore. His father spent more than 60 hours a week on a floor-recovering business, installing carpet and ceramics. His mother nursed the elderly. St-Pierre earned his own floor-recovering certificate before making it big in MMA. Tony Gattillo, the Montreal-based producer of the show, believes St-Pierre's story can serve as inspiration. 'I think people will leave the show very motivated and will want to apply certain things that Georges is going to share … for the first time. And motivate the people,' said Gattillo, a former singer now working behind the scenes in the entertainment industry. 'And help them realize that if you want to be a champion in your life or you want to reach a certain goal, there is hard work to do. There's dedication. There's discipline. And mental toughness.' When St-Pierre entered the modern wing of the UFC Hall of Fame in 2020, he was one of seven UFC fighters to win a title in two weight classes. He retired on a 13-fight win streak with a record that included 13 title fight victories, the second most in UFC history, and boasted the most strikes landed (2,591), most significant ground strikes landed (461) and most takedowns (90). — This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 10, 2025
Hamilton Spectator
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
‘Rare' experience with Canadian UFC legend Georges St-Pierre comes to Toronto in September. Here's how to get ticket starting this week
Seen by many as one of the greatest fighters in mixed martial arts history, Georges St-Pierre is heading to Toronto in September for a 'rare and revealing' evening experience at Meridian Hall. The one-night-only event, according to a news release, will offer fans a 'rare glimpse inside the mind of a fighter who became a global icon.' A post shared by Georges St-Pierre (@georgesstpierre) The live interview event is set to take place on Monday, Sept. 29, at 8 p.m. and will be followed by an audience question-and-answer period where fans will get the chance to ask questions and hear personal responses from the former UFC superstar. 'This is a chance to speak from the heart — to share not only what I've done, but what I've learned,' St-Pierre said in the release. 'I've always believed greatness isn't something you're born with — it's something you build, day by day, choice by choice. That's the story I want to tell.' Tony Gattillo, founder of Gattillo Group and the event's producer, has conducted similar events with the likes of legends like Al Pacino, Arnold Schwarzenegger and John Travolta. 'For Canada, there's no one more inspiring to lead the way than Georges St-Pierre — an icon of discipline, perseverance and authenticity, and a national treasure,' Gattillo said. An event presale is set to go live on Ticketmaster on Wednesday, July 9, at 10 a.m., followed by a general public sale on Friday, July 11, at 10 p.m. A limited number of post-show VIP packages will be available, offering an 'intimate post-show experience' with St-Pierre that includes a cocktail reception, professional photo, signed memorabilia and a viewing of his original World Championship belt. A post shared by Georges St-Pierre (@georgesstpierre) St-Pierre, inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2021, holds the UFC record for most wins in title bouts, and held a professional record of 26 wins and just two losses. The two-division UFC champion won titles in both the welterweight and middleweight divisions, becoming one of only a few athletes to achieve such a feat in multiple weight classes. His records include 13 championship wins, nine consecutive title defences, 90 total rounds won and 90 successful takedowns, which is the most in UFC history, according to the event news release. The UFC legend first retired in 2013, but returned in 2017 at Madison Square Garden to became the UFC Middleweight Champion. He would announce his retirement from professional mixed martial arts in 2019, and now lives in Montreal and travels the world training with coaches and partners across every discipline.
