As Georges St. Pierre preps for what could be his final bout at welterweight this Saturday at UFC 129 against Jake Shields, I found the current UFC champion’s first MMA contest.
GSP stepped onto the scene on Jan. 25, 2002 when he took on Ivan Menjivar at UCC 7.
While St. Pierre wasn’t crisp in all areas, he still showed the promise to become the great champion he is today.
Even for a first-time fighter he showed a rare combination of diverse strikes and solid takedown defense. Typically a debut fighter is strong in one area and lacking in the other.
Unfortunately, the fight ended with a bit of controversy, but GSP was still clearly winning the fight and it was the beginning of a historic career.
