UFC 200 Rumors: Georges St-Pierre to Face Robbie Lawler?

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre watched UFC 196 in Las Vegas on Saturday, sparking rumors suggesting that he is nearing his return to competition.

And according to ESPN, St-Pierre, who has not fought since escaping with a split decision victory against Johny Hendricks in November 2013, could face Robbie Lawler for the UFC welterweight title at UFC 200.

“The ball is in St-Pierre’s court,” ESPN insider Brett Okamoto said. “He has never needed to come back. But the feeling is he wants to come back. An attempt to reclaim the title and prove he’s still the No. 1 welterweight in the world? Even after all this time off? That’s a big-money fight.”

St-Pierre was spotted at UFC 196 on Saturday, which fueled speculation that the mixed martial arts superstar wanted to gauge UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor. In fact, rumors also suggested that McGregor was planning to call St-Pierre out had he won against Nate Diaz on Saturday. The plan did not materialize, though, after McGregor absorbed a humiliating second-round submission loss to Diaz.

After the fight, UFC president Dana White denied reports about McGregor’s plan to get GSP’s attention. White reiterated that St-Pierre’s presence was not related to the rumored plan to arrange a GSP-McGregor showdown.

White admitted, though, that they have reached out to St-Pierre about a possible comeback fight later this year. However, the UFC president thinks the Canadian superstar is still undecided about his future.

“Georges just wanted to come to the fight tonight. Have we been talking to Georges? Yes we have,” White said via MMA Junkie. “But who knows. I honestly, right here, right now, don’t know if Georges still wants to fight.”

In an interview with UFC.com, St-Pierre, who previously complained of UFC’s lack of effort in fighting use of banned substances, also denied that he is planning to fight inside the Octagon soon. He said he has been keeping himself in shape through continuous training but it has nothing to do with a possible fight this year.