Looks like UFC 79: “Nemesis” will have a welterweight title fight after all — Matt Hughes (41-5) vs. Georges St. Pierre (14-2) III.
According to Matt Hughes blog:
“I’m going to fight Georges St. Pierre on December 29th. I’ve got a couple reasons why I’ve made this decision and I will share those at a later time. I’ve asked for this to be for an interim title and if Matt Serra can’t fight in a year, then this would just be the title fight; but I don’t know if that is going to happen right now. I will keep you all posted. This WILL BE for the interim title, so it will be a 5-round fight.”
Hughes was originally scheduled to face current welterweight champion Matt “The Terror” Serra on December 29. However, Serra was forced to withdraw after suffering a serious back injury during training.
UFC.com also announced news of the rubbermatch shortly after Hughes’ post, billing the match up as a fight between the “two greatest welterweights of all-time.” It’s a fight that “Rush” apparently accepted with no hesitation despite the short notice.
Here’s a snip from the Canadian:
“I’m so excited to get this fight. I’m fighting Matt Hughes for the interim title right now, and then after that I’m going to go after Serra. I’ve wanted that rematch against Serra, and this is the best scenario that can happen.”
St. Pierre — who has one loss to Serra (UFC 69), as well as a win (UFC 65) and a loss to Hughes (UFC 50) — was waiting in the wings to compete against the winner of the Serra-Hughes sometime in early 2008.
What a difference a day makes.
Serra is clearly disappointed with the situation and will actually be rooting for his “nemesis” Hughes to come out victorious.
A snip from Serra:
“I can’t believe the position this puts me in. I’m actually rooting for Matt Hughes so I can beat his ass.”
This is an odd time to be a UFC champion: Randy Couture has resigned and BJ Penn and Joe Stevenson will fight for the interim lightweight title at UFC 80 because Sean Sherk is embroiled in a steroid appeal that could see him suspended for up to 12 months. Essentially, (if Sherk is cleared) there will be two 170-pound and 155-pound champions and not a heavyweight titleholder (if “The Natural” does not return.)
Regardless, this is the best possible move under some difficult circumstances. It’s a main event-caliber fight that is equal to — if not better than — the original booking. It also sets up an “undisputed” clash as soon as Serra is good to go in the New Year.
For the latest UFC 79 fight card, which also features the light heavyweight brawl between Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva, click here. The pay-per-view (PPV) event takes place from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on New Year’s Eve weekend.
214 Comments »
Yes! I can’t wait!
P.S. You spelled ‘originally’ wrong.
This is a prank right?
This made my evening and I noticed it about 20 minutes ago on hughes web site. Its really sort of bad news for hughes because he had a much, much better chance of getting the title back with fighting serra but now gsp…”ouch” for hughes. Gsp is loving it because he not only gets the title sooner but he’ll most likely get another crack at serra and can avenge his loss. I imagine this fight going differently than the last but still feel hughes will lose again but think its going to be a much better fight than hughes vs serra. Serra is so over rated now with his last fight and so many feel feel he’s a serious contender and I don’t. YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[quote comment=”217292″]Yes! I can’t wait!
P.S. You spelled ‘originally’ wrong.[/quote]
Yeah, I was typing my ass off trying to get this in print!
I just hope GSP has been training intensely lately and will be able to come in prepared for this fight. This simply made the card that much better. I’d still be very surprised if it actually happens tho.
Wow, it’s on UFC.com now too. I honestly can’t believe it. What a PPV!
This fight will answer a lot of question about there last fight because I can assure you guys hughes will not want to stand with gsp. Serra’s probably loving it deep down because and if he’s honest with himself he knows he’ll probably lose and if he truly hates hughes, hughes fighting gsp is the best christmas present he could ever hope for. The catch .22 is he might have to face a very focused angry gsp this time around which isn’t so good for him. If I was serra I would retire as champ and focus on my bjj schools because I really feel his next fight won’t go so well and he could leave on top, and permanently not answer the question if his gsp fight was a fluke.
Fantastic news. Props to GSP for “stepping up”. This card “will go throught the roof” in PPV buys.
Hell yes I am friggin pumped, but bad news for Hughes though.
Wow!!!!!!!! this is wicked news, I bet more people will actually tune in now than with the matt vs matt fight. Awesome!!!!!!!!!
I got an orgasm when I heard the news. This is better than Huges/Sera.
F*ck YEAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! Wow, UFC 79 is shaping up to be the best damn card ever! Matt Hughes, you’ve been a dominant champion in the WW division and although ur personality stinks, one must commend u as a fighter. That being said, GSP will smash through u in the 1st or 2nd round and pave way for ur retirement…GSP will then hold the belt for three years running before moving upto 185 for new challenges.
WOW!!!! I was originally sad that this wan’t gonna be Matt/Matt, but I guess this is a pretty awesome substitute, a lot of folks will say this fight was inevitable anyway once Highes beat Serra (me not being one, I personally think Hughes/Serra would be a good fight) but hey, I think Hughes asking for the interim title was not only a smart move, but pretty legit, these two are both worthy of the WW crown IMHO
This could be Matts best chance at beating GSP. Gsp didnt plan on fighting until March or April now he only has 4 weeks to get ready for Hughes. Lets not forget Hughes is no push over. This could be some interesting strategy on Matts part.
[quote post=”4001″]I got an orgasm when I heard the news. This is better than Huges/Sera. [/quote]
Yeah this was really weird.
I am very happy with this news. Hughes is gonna get smashed again! YAY! Also i think that Serra has a much better chance beating GSP again than Hughes mainly because Hughes would just lay on top of Serra for what would seem like an eternity. Now Serra will most likely fight GSP and have a huge mental edge because of what he did to GSP, before that fight GSP had never been beaten so badly. But if Hughes wins than that would knock GSP way down on the contendership ladder.
Hell yeah!.
Let’s officially knock Hughes out of the picture for good!
there is a god!! thank you ufc for making this right
holy shnikey!!! a must buy!!! DVR FTW!!!
YESSSSSSSSSS! Rubber Match And GSP Is Gonna Win.
GSP Best Outta Canada.
After hearing about this fight, i got a boner. Hughes goes down TKO round 2. Then he will move up and get his az whooped by silva 30 secs round 1
“I’m so excited to get this fight,” said St-Pierre.
“I’m fighting Matt Hughes for the interim title right now, and then after that I’m going to go after Serra. I’ve wanted that rematch against Serra, and this is the best scenario that can happen.”
WAR GSP !!!!!
I just took a shit for pleasure… ahh life is back to normal
This is too good to be true. I have to be dreaming, someone wake me up. War GSP!!!!
wow. this is no doubt an amazing card. best one in years.
[quote comment=”217307″]Fantastic news. Props to GSP for “stepping up”. This card “will go throught the roof” in PPV buys.[/quote]
Props to Hughes! I didn’t think he would want it but I guess he does.
This will be like Silva-Franklin II. The fight will last a little longer than the first one, but it still ends in a GSP TKO.
Unlucky for you Hughes, dildo. GSP is going to kick you into the third row. Again. And you will never get a whiff of that belt again. Then you can stomp and pout your way out of the building like you did after losing the bowling challenge, fruitcake.
Way better than Serra vs Hughes, way to go GSP for steppin up.
it’s official on the ufc website
the ufc is back in business!!!!!
I had an interview with Greg Jackson this morning and he hinted towards it…that is going to be a fantastic fight…I cannot wait.
huges want to fight gsp now because the fact that even if he will beat serra just incase that the fight will hapen on dec29,he will more likely be satisfied on beating GSP again rather than winning against serra even though matt serra has a title, because he lost badly against GSP the last time,he want s to prove that he’s better than GSP
I don’t like hughes on the show but I want him 2 win. I want to see him fight matt serra and it wont happen if GSP wins. That and I don’t really like GSP. SOO YEAH. PZZZZZZ
GSP is never out of shape. I’d doubt that will be an issue. With a loss to GSP, I wonder if Hughes will live up to his words and move up to fight Anderson Silva…
dang. I didn’t expect this to happen. Too bad for Serra though. Anyone know how long he will be down? This is gonna end up meaning two LW & two WW champs, and no HW champ. WTF is going on in the UFC?
I can speculate that Matt’s ideal plan for his last three fights are to: 1)Win the interim title against a less than optimally prepared GSP; 2)Defeat a post-injury Serra for the WW title; 3)Move up a weight class, win the MW title, then retire a living legend.
Keep dreaming Hughes…
While this is the best case scenario for Hughes to achieve these things, I don’t see him pulling off all three.
GSP is the greatest threat to the final chapter of Hughes’ WW legacy. If Hughes loses to an under-prepared GSP, he will still make the hall of fame but it will not be in a blaze of glory. It will be more like a changing of the guard.
i think its gonna be funny to see everyones posts who keeps saying gsp is gonna beat hughes after the fight, it’ll be excuse making. hughes is gonna catch a raw deal either way, if he beats gsp everyone will say its cause he was underprepared.
i really wanna see this fight, but i just think it may be a bit thrown together and definatly wont be the fight it coulda been if both fighters were training for each other. so i do think they are letting the better fight go to waste to make up for serras injury, cause i dont think that anyone will argue that hughes vs. gsp would be a better fight anyday. anyone who actually looks at it reasonably knows that serra has no chance in hell against hughes or gsp, but in the end it doesnt matter who matt serra faces next, he will lose.
wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!
What the fuck!!!! Serra is getting fucked over big time. I was really looking forward to him beating Hughes ass. Now GSP is gonna whoop Hughes, and we’ll never get to see Hughes vs Serra. There fucking everything up there’s no stability.
wow the UFC finaly did something right for a change.
WARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR GSP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This was the best Christmas present i could ever get. GSP Hughes and Chuck Wandy on the same card are you kidding me? Can’t wait to see GSP whoop Hughes ass a second time.
The only thing that i feel sucks about this is that Hughes or GSP get to win an interim title because Serra is injured. So does this now mean that in the LHW division they get an interim title because Rampage is hurt? He never did it when Franklin was out for 9 months. Just another way that Dana can help out one of his boys. In all actuality, He should have made Serra fight Hughes months ago, but had to try and build up excitement through his crappy tv show of wannabe fighters who will never go anywhere. Raw deal for Serra. I can tell you this, and you can disagree if you like, This would have never happened to Liddell if he was hurt. Go hoop your head Dana.
PS- iam a huge GSP fan and he is gonna murder Hughes
This is awesome news thank god I get 2 watch GSP smash through Hughes again!!!!I hate Hughes I dont respect him I dont care what he’s done he has no respect for any other fighters and I hope GSP beats his ass worse this time then he did last time. I think Hughes will retire if GSP beats him bad enough. Serra is a good fighter whether people wanna admit it or not yeah maybe his fight wit GSP was a fluke but hey give the man his props he beat a bad mother fucker ON HIS FEET!!! But honestly if GSP beats Hughes and I think he will he will beat Serra next go around GSP wont get caught like that again watch and see!!
[quote comment=”217376″]i think its gonna be funny to see everyones posts who keeps saying gsp is gonna beat hughes after the fight, it’ll be excuse making. hughes is gonna catch a raw deal either way, if he beats gsp everyone will say its cause he was underprepared.
i really wanna see this fight, but i just think it may be a bit thrown together and definatly wont be the fight it coulda been if both fighters were training for each other. so i do think they are letting the better fight go to waste to make up for serras injury, cause i dont think that anyone will argue that hughes vs. gsp would be a better fight anyday. anyone who actually looks at it reasonably knows that serra has no chance in hell against hughes or gsp, but in the end it doesnt matter who matt serra faces next, he will lose.[/quote]
No what u typed was funny dude Hughes is out of his prime and GSP is an athletic mother fucker yeah he has a month to train for the fight but when the fight gets here trust me he will be ready and if he loses then he loses he is way better shape then Hughes and anyway I’m sure GSP has been training since his last fight and lets not forget GSP and Hughes know each others styles very well.
[quote comment=”217396″]The only thing that i feel sucks about this is that Hughes or GSP get to win an interim title because Serra is injured. So does this now mean that in the LHW division they get an interim title because Rampage is hurt? He never did it when Franklin was out for 9 months. Just another way that Dana can help out one of his boys. In all actuality, He should have made Serra fight Hughes months ago, but had to try and build up excitement through his crappy tv show of wannabe fighters who will never go anywhere. Raw deal for Serra. I can tell you this, and you can disagree if you like, This would have never happened to Liddell if he was hurt. Go hoop your head Dana.[/quote]The reason it wouldn’t have happened to Liddel was because he had several title defenses. If Liddel had got a serious injury after he won the title the first time I guarentee this woulda happened to him too. If Sera had been the champ for 3 years and defeneded his belt 4 times they wouldn’t have had an interm title fight.
gotta respect Matt for excepting this fight…..I didn’t think he would want to risk it…..
ahhhh man this is killing me!!!!! I am going to be on some frigging beach in Malaysia and I am going to have to find a way to see this fight.
GSP BY KNOCK OUT in the 1st Round!
Props to both Hughes and St. Pierre for giving fans an early Christmas present. I’m sure Dana will be laughing all the way
to the bank. At last. . .something to be thankful for!!!
OMG This is great news. After GSP handles Hughes again, he can go and beat Serra’s loud mouth ass too!
Still sour beause my boy Serra hnded him his ass.
i agree with spider style in that the build up of the hype is not goin too good..Dana prolly thought it’ll be like tito and ken…it’s rediculous the amount of time Serra has had the belt without actually defending it so this is a GOOD move by the UFC…all in all no matter who wins on dec. 29th (GSP ALL THE WAY!!!)…i wana see Serra fight both of these fighters some time down the road…
Great fight, I think this is Hughes’ best chance of beating GSP and I hope he can do it then retire…. Warrrr HUghes!!!
I don’t really like this. I think they should have put it on the January card. It doesn’t give GSP enough time to prepare. I still think he has a great chance of winning, but I think and extra few weeks wouldn’t have hurt.
Secondly, I think all of this interm title stuff is gay. Personally I think GSP beats them both, and hopefully Serra comes back quick so that GSP can be the undisputed champ. Interm is just so gay.
One question though…When GSP wins…Will he fight anyone else or will he wait for Serra to settle the score?
One final thing…Serra will fight Hughes as long as he doens’t retire. It’s just too easy to market that grudge match. It won’t be for a title and probably won’t be until the middle/end of next year, but it will happen.
[quote comment=”217316″]F*ck YEAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! Wow, UFC 79 is shaping up to be the best damn card ever! Matt Hughes, you’ve been a dominant champion in the WW division and although ur personality stinks, one must commend u as a fighter. That being said, GSP will smash through u in the 1st or 2nd round and pave way for ur retirement…GSP will then hold the belt for three years running before moving upto 185 for new challenges.[/quote]
I agree. GSP and/ or Hendo have the best chance to move to 185 and challenge Spida. This of course after GSP dominates the WW div. Pretty tough though with Fitch, KOS, Karo, Diego, Alves, and others coming up.
[quote comment=”217403″]gotta respect Matt for excepting this fight…..I didn’t think he would want to risk it…..[/quote]
I could see Hughes risking it. He seems like a no-nonsense “yes sir” type of guy that does whatever his coach or boss puts in front of him.
On the other hand, I didn’t think Dana White would risk it. I guess he’s so upset about the quality of recent cards that he was willing to ruin his TUF 6 fight-buildup to put on a great show.
OMG this is amazing news.
GSP will win the belt !!!
Then his defense will be easy, SERRA ! LOL what a joke.
He’s gonna be holding for a veryyyyyyy long time.
I think this will be a case of if the fight stands up george wins, if it goes to ground matt wins… I can see matt shooting time after time so I hope george times a knee or kick on him, when he’s shooting.
GSP saves the day
Suprised this match was made on such short notice because
GSP could have said not enough time for him to get prepared and fight ready so big up GSP
Hughes didn’t have to accept and risk losing the fight so big up Hughes
Dana is risking losing a fight between Serra/Hughes which has been built up since Serra won the belt and through the TUF season so Big up Dana
UFC 79 WILL END THE YEAR IN A BANG
If Hughes loses to GSP again, he’s out of contention but I would like to see him fight either Fitch or Koscheck. That would be a wrestling clinic.
This is why Hughes is a real man and a real champion. Hughes never takes the easy way out, and he never ducks fights. Serra is a punk who has been trying to milk his 15 minutes of fame as much as possible. He is a loser.
Nathan, this is the fight we have been waiting for, tow real champions going head to head. Serra is a joke and should be stripped of the belt.
omg i literally got a boner when i read this. right now were looking at matt hughes vs george st pierre for the title, wanderlei silva vs chuck liddell and Lyoto Machida Vs. Rameau Sokoudjou ( and i dunno if you’ve seen sokoudjou in pride but he is quite impressive and could battle machida’s awkward counter punch style) 3 fights and still 2 more to add to the card , i must say this is definately one to not miss over previous ones those 3 fights alone sell the ppv. i cannot wait for this one. and as for serra get better bud and you can kick the “ass” of either guy since if you knocked out gsp you should have it in ya to do it again now huh ? serra shouldn’t care who he fights he’s the champ .
Serra is pathetic. He thinks he is going to beat Hughes? He is a clown. It took guts for Matt to takes this fight, and I believe he will win. Ground and pound all the way, no standing and striking.
[quote comment=”217460″]Serra is pathetic. He thinks he is going to beat Hughes? He is a clown. It took guts for Matt to takes this fight, and I believe he will win. Ground and pound all the way, no standing and striking.[/quote]
Not gonna happen, especially after he eats another kick to the dome. Sorry, much like the second Silva vs. Franklin fight, this is going to end like the previous fight. TKO Rd. 2.
Matt Hughs risks nothing…
If he did beat Serra (everyone would say it was a gimme)
If he beats GSP he still gets Serra.
If he loses and GSP beats Serra, Hughs can arrange for Serra and him to bang out a fight.(Why should the hype die, just because there is no title to put out)
I say GSP over Hughs, GSP over Serra, Serra vs Hughs, GSP over vs Fitch… Kos vs Karo, Karo vs GSP by the summer for the Title.
I think every 4 months the Champion must defend his Title… Including that dumbass show… Do they really need Title holders/contenders as coaches???
IF by some stroke of Luck Hughs does beat GSP, Serra then he will move up to MW and go for that Title. Skipping over talented fighters in his own division like Karo, Fitch, Kos, Diego and now Swick… I think vs them 4 he would run 60%.
Both GSP and Hughs really stepped up and will make it a big fight. It looks like this is a card you cant afford to miss.
All its missing is Brock Lesnars Debut.
I don’t think so, Jake. Unlike the last fight, Hughes has had plenty of time to train and prepare. Also, he is not going to make the mistake of trying to stand and strike with GSP. Hughes wins by decision or submission in later rounds.
[quote comment=”217475″]I don’t think so, Jake. Unlike the last fight, Hughes has had plenty of time to train and prepare. Also, he is not going to make the mistake of trying to stand and strike with GSP. Hughes wins by decision or submission in later rounds.[/quote]
He has a lot of time to train…..for Serra. Two totally different fighters. Hughes matched up very well with Serra, and was as good if not better in most areas. This will not be the case with GSP. Also, it wasn’t a mistake of Hughes for trying to stand with GSP, he COULD NOT TAKE HIM DOWN!! When you take someone down you are forced to stand and strike, and we all know what happened when he did that. I don’t know if you saw GSP vs. KOS, but KOS was the unanimous best wrestler in the UFC and he was dominated in that area, so what makes you think Hughes will fare any differently?
sorry when you “cant” take someone down you are forced to strike…
I would love to see Hughes attempt to take down GSP.
GSP can match power and out posture Matt to prevent the take down *we have seen this*. SPRaLL is excellent as well. NOW lets remember that we are seeing a new GSP a Greg Jackson GSP…
Even when Hughes has GSP down,He will get up almost at will.
GSP via Armbar. GSP via TKO. We have a couple options here, where as Hughes could win via 5 round decision, or rear naked, but i cant see him getting in position to sink it.
I would so much rather see serra vs Huhges, maybe we will still get to see it one day
[quote comment=”217486″]I would so much rather see serra vs Huhges, maybe we will still get to see it one day[/quote]
I would rather see two more talented fighters, than an over-hyped grudge match.
You know what, as much as I cant stand Huhges, this move fighting Gsp gave me a respect back for him, and Serra would have to agree, this is a big chance he is taking that he dont have to, and i beleave its for the fans, i will also be rooting for Huhges
i not sure about this although it is a great fight no doubt!! For one the ufc are losing a big fight in sera v hughes, hughes would have killed him tho, sera is a wee bawbag! I also think this will be different this time around, hughes will stick to what he is good at, dominating fighters where he is comfortable. Although there is always the danger of being caught by gsp’s classy strikes! However if hughes gets gsp to ground there is only one winner, even with gsp being fairly good on the ground!! A night of upsets in my mind in the fans minds. Liddell to beat silva and hughes to beat gsp quote me haha!!!
[quote comment=”217488″]You know what, as much as I cant stand Huhges, this move fighting Gsp gave me a respect back for him, and Serra would have to agree, this is a big chance he is taking that he dont have to, and i beleave its for the fans, i will also be rooting for Huhges[/quote
I also have respect for Hughes for taking this fight, but what about GSP taking this fight? He could have just waited for the winner, but wanted to fight, and on 5 weeks notice!!!!
I TOLD YOU GUYS that this fight would happen 2 days ago.
The GSP v Hughes fight is what should have happened anyways…the winner fights Serra the Champ.
THIS IS GREAT NEWS.
VIVA GSP!
[quote comment=”217493″]I TOLD YOU GUYS that this fight would happen 2 days ago.
The GSP v Hughes fight is what should have happened anyways…the winner fights Serra the Champ.
THIS IS GREAT NEWS.
VIVA GSP![/quote]
Dont necessary agree with you here, hughes shouldnt have to win fight after fight to get his title shot, he dominated for 3 years gsp didnt thats why hughes got his title shot over gsp pure and simple!! That would happened in boxing or any other combat sport, hughes deserved his title shot!!
[quote comment=”217495″][quote comment=”217493″]I TOLD YOU GUYS that this fight would happen 2 days ago.
The GSP v Hughes fight is what should have happened anyways…the winner fights Serra the Champ.
THIS IS GREAT NEWS.
VIVA GSP![/quote]
Dont necessary agree with you here, hughes shouldnt have to win fight after fight to get his title shot, he dominated for 3 years gsp didnt thats why hughes got his title shot over gsp pure and simple!! That would happened in boxing or any other combat sport, hughes deserved his title shot!![/quote]
fight after fight? He fought once to get his title shot again!!!!!
GSP and Hughes are both true warriors. Both are putting in a lot of risk for this fight and I thank the UFC for doing this. Hughes is risking his guaranteed fight with Serra while GSP is risking is guaranteed fight later next year for whoever was suppose to win the welterweight belt before this mess. My hats off to both of them.
my point is he SHOULDNT have to win fight after fight to get his title shot!
lets not argue about pointless things lets enjoy the ufc festivities its gony be a great show!! Cmon liddell haha!!
This is a perfect example of why I dont understand how people can hate on Dana.
Thanks Dana, you saved the day agian!
[quote comment=”217505″]my point is he SHOULDNT have to win fight after fight to get his title shot![/quote]
my bad Mo…I didn’t read your post carefully enough.
[quote comment=”217439″]GSP saves the day
Suprised this match was made on such short notice because
GSP could have said not enough time for him to get prepared and fight ready so big up GSP
Hughes didn’t have to accept and risk losing the fight so big up Hughes
Dana is risking losing a fight between Serra/Hughes which has been built up since Serra won the belt and through the TUF season so Big up Dana
UFC 79 WILL END THE YEAR IN A BANG[/quote]
I agree 100%
props to- Hughesus Christ(4 excepting a harder fighter)
props to- GSP(4 stepping in short notice to save the day)
props to- Dana White(4 quick thinking and all the risks)