Beauty and the beats

Ultimate Fighting superstar Georges St-Pierre
isn’t just another pretty face

by ERIK LEIJON

Mixed-martial artist and UFC welterweight champion Georges “Rush” St-Pierre knows how to take a punch, but upon finding out he made this year’s Best of Montreal Most Desirable Man list, the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world was astonishingly taken aback.

“Wow, I almost spit out my drink,” said the double-black-belt in Kyokushin karate and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, at Buona Notte for the Canadian launch of Affliction clothing last Friday, a day before UFC 113 at the Bell Centre. “Maybe the people who voted for me have vision problems,” he laughs. “I don’t consider myself to be that attractive. I mean, look at my ears,” he says, referring to the tiny, cauliflowered stubs protruding from the sides of his shaven head. Otherwise, for a guy who makes a living fighting some of the world’s deadliest gladiators in an octagonal cage where few rules apply, the 29-year-old’s face shows few signs of wear.

“I think [being named one of Montreal’s most desirable men] will make me more confident, though it probably has more to do with me being a fighter and a champion,” he says. “It gives me a bit of sex appeal. If I wasn’t a champion, I don’t think I’d have that ranking.”

As for being the favourite fighter of most female MMA fans, St-Pierre figures the ladies aren’t as amused with the bravado and trash talking prevalent in the sport, which the usually smiling St-Pierre is famous for avoiding. “I try to stay humble, to be a good role mode,l and I think it’s maybe something women like about me,” he says.

From octagon to Olympics?

Of course, it’s a lot less surprising to see St-Pierre factoring among the city’s most popular sports personalities. He’s in the midst of a title reign that has extended to four successful defences, including a five-round rager against British punching bag Dan Hardy last March 27. After the fight, St-Pierre exhibited some of his trademark perfectionist attitude when he apologized to fans after the victorious bout because he didn’t knock out the steel-chinned but hopelessly outclassed Hardy.

St-Pierre isn’t just looking for new challenges outside the octagon, as he continues his march towards becoming the sport’s first true crossover superstar. There have been whispers about eventually moving up a weight class in the hopes of finding better competition, and he even suggested once he may ditch his pro career for a shot at wrestling for Canada at the 2012 Olympics.

Fresh from his bout against Hardy, St-Pierre didn’t fight in last weekend’s Montreal event, although not having to prepare for a match meant he could lend his star power as an ambassador for the sport. “For sure I like to fight in Montreal, but to be here and not be fighting lets me enjoy the atmosphere of the weekend,” he says. “I get to taste the excitement this way, and when I’m preparing for a fight, I’m focused only on that and I’m not able to enjoy the outside fun.”

One of those outside activities the affable St-Pierre has no qualms participating in is meeting fans, and—the two masochistic and utterly rude gents at Buona Notte shouting “Punch me, Georges” notwithstanding—St-Pierre says most MMA fans are a pleasant, dedicated bunch. “It isn’t just Montreal,” he says. “Fans are good to me wherever I am. They’re all equal in my mind.”

Talk is best

St-Pierre originally came to the city from his South Shore home to study kinesiology at UQÀM while working on his MMA career. He never did get his degree. Opportunity came knocking in the form of a fight for the vacant welterweight title against Matt Hughes at UFC 50 in 2004, one of only two losses in his career. Nevertheless, he quit school and dedicated himself to mixed martial arts.

It wasn’t all glamour. He worked a variety of jobs to pay for his schooling, including providing security at nightclub Fuzzy Brossard. Despite his current standing as a champion fighter, at 5’10” and 170 lbs., he’s pretty undersized as far as bouncers go. “I was working there mostly on Thursday nights, when it was hip hop night. It was a really bad place to be, there were a lot of gangsters and fights would always break out. I actually really hated it.

“But it helped me, because I learned that in the streets, you can be as strong as you want, but nobody can outrun a bullet. You find out it’s always better to talk out problems rather than just rely on physical strength.”