“Every now and then, something comes up that still does really
motivate you,” Maia
wrote.
“Grappling
Georges St.
Pierre will be a huge challenge & great motivation. You GSP are
one of the greatest competitors ever, whom I respect a lot. I’m
game! Looking forward to competing at UFC invitational.”
The last time “GSP” competed as a professional, he put
then-middleweight kingpin
Michael
Bisping to sleep with a rear-naked choke to claim a belt in a
second weight class. That return came after nearly four years away,
when St. Pierre initially retired in 2013 after winning 12
welterweight bouts in a row, all but one for a title. Throughout
his career, the Canadian has landed submissions on the likes of
Matt
Hughes,
Frank Trigg
and
Pete
Spratt, to name a few. Only one man ever tapped him out:
Hughes, and St. Pierre went on to avenge the loss by knocking out
and later submitting Hughes in their rematch and rubber match,
respectively.
The 45-year-old Maia hung up his gloves after a decision loss to
Belal
Muhammad in 2021. Although later passed by
Charles
Oliveira, at one time, Maia held the UFC record for the most
submissions ever performed. The man from Sao Paulo, Brazil, still
celebrates the top spot for rear-naked chokes in the Octagon, with
eight – and Oliveira and
Renato
Carneiro both trail him with six each. The last MMA victory for
Maia came against
Ben Askren,
as he ran roughshod over the wrestler before rendering him
unconscious with a rear-naked choke. Maia has never been tapped out
as a professional.
Shortly after this news broke,
MMA
Junkie reported that the matchup was not finalized, despite
Maia stating that he would be grappling St. Pierre. The news outlet
mentioned that other opponents are still being discussed, and that
this fight was not official.