The question finally has an
answer, and the answer is yes.
Let me fill in a few more
details if that is a bit too vague. Yes, UFC welterweight champion Georges
St-Pierre will fight top-ranked Johny Hendricks.
Yes, the fight does have a
date, and that date is Nov. 16.
Yes, the fight has a location:
Las Vegas, Nev.
No, the fight does not have a
venue as of yet.
Ariel Helwani broke the news
of St-Pierre’s impending title defense on Tuesday’s episode of UFC Tonight.
St-Pierre (24-2) last fought
at UFC 158, defeating Nick Diaz by unanimous decision in front of a hometown
crowd in Montreal’s Bell Centre. The win was St-Pierre’s eighth consecutive
defense of the title. It was also his fourth consecutive fight in his home
country of Canada.
When St-Pierre steps into the
Octagon in Las Vegas in November it will be the first time he has fought
outside of Canada since defending his title against Dan Hardy in New Jersey at
UFC 111.
The last time St-Pierre
competed in Las Vegas was in July 2009.
In that bout, he defeated Thiago Alves by unanimous decision.
Hendricks’ (15-1) last fight
was also at UFC 158. Hendricks defeated Carlos Condit on that card, running his
unbeaten streak to six consecutive fights.
Helwani also noted that the
event that St-Pierre and Hendricks will meet at would also serve as the UFC’s
20th anniversary event.
The UFC had hoped that it
would be able to hold that event in New York City’s Madison Square Garden, but
the failure of that state to legalize MMA made that dream impossible, as
Newsday’s Mark La Monica explains. (Source)
