Georges St-Pierre put Canada on the map of the MMA community by dominating the welterweight division during his heyday with the UFC. St-Pierre later claimed the middleweight title, retiring soon after.
Still, he is involved with the sport, and his close friend, Aiemann Zahabi, is set to take on Jose Aldo at UFC 315. Zahabi is also the younger brother of St-Pierre’s head coach, Firas.
Aiemann Zahabi Shares the Advice He Received From Georges St-Pierre
Zahabi said St-Pierre had shared words of wisdom before his last fight against Pedro Munhoz at UFC Edmonton. During the UFC 315 media interview, a reporter asked whether “Rush” had given similar instructions this time.
“He just told me not to over-respect him, you know? He said he made that mistake against Matt Hughes the first time around, and a lot of guys do it when they fight legends. So, make sure not to over-respect him, he’s just another guy, nothing special, you know?” Zahabi said.
The 37-year-old also shared that he asked St-Pierre to be on his corner, to which the former two-division UFC champion happily obliged. Unfortunately, other obligations have forced St-Pierre away from Zahabi during fight week.
Ranked 15th in the UFC’s bantamweight division, Zahabi is on a five-fight winning streak. Meanwhile, Aldo is coming off a split decision loss to Mario Bautista at UFC 307 — a defeat that frustrated the Brazilian to the point where he could not talk or think about fighting.
Jose Aldo responds to Georges St-Pierre’s advice to Aiemann Zahabi
During the UFC 315 media interview, a reporter informed Aldo about the advice St-Pierre has given Zahabi. Aldo revealed that it’s not the first time the Canadian great has cornered his opponent.
Nonetheless, it doesn’t mean Aldo will hold ill will towards St-Pierre. “There’s nothing that happens with the fact that he’s going to be opposite to me that will take the respect and the love that I have for that guy,” Aldo said (via translator).
“He’s an icon. I have the most respect. He’s just doing his job; whatever happens afterwards doesn’t matter. We still have the same admiration for each other,” the 38-year-old added.
“Junior” claims the real winners of the current situation will be the fans, who will see two legends, one fighting and the other as a cornerman.
Like St-Pierre, Aldo is a long-reigning UFC champion and easily a GOAT contender for the featherweight division. The 38-year-old tried to follow in his colleague’s footsteps and become a two-division champion, but he lost the bantamweight title fight to Petr Yan at UFC 251.
He mounted a second run at a title, but faltered against Merab Dvalishvili, now the champion, at UFC 278. The upcoming fight against Zahabi will surely show whether Aldo has another title run left in him. A loss would likely mean the slender hope of “Junior” getting a title shot is over.