UFC
Georges St-Pierre's trainer says UFC return date still unknown, decision to be made next month
Jun 8, 2012 - 3:20:32 PM Georges St-Pierre's trainer says UFC return date still unknown, decision to be made next month

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

It's been generally accepted that UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre is looking at a November return to action with the UFC's return to Montreal that month, but it may or may not be an accurate timeline for him. According to his head trainer, Tri-Star's Firas Zahabi, St-Pierre is doing well in his recovery, but he's not yet ready to put a timetable on his return.

"I won't be confident to [give a time table] until I see him in the gym and moving around and live sparring," Zahabi said in an interview with MMAJunkie.com. "You never know how [a long layoff] messes with a guy's game. So let's see what he looks like in sparring and see how it goes."

Zahabi said that sparring should come by next month, and he talked about what St-Pierre is working on at the moment, as well as his philosophy to avoid training injuries as much as possible.

"[He's doing] a little light jiu-jitsu," Zahabi said. "It's technique now, nothing live and nothing with contact. Just some light moving around and going over the moves he usually does and reviewing the playbook."

"A lot of guys sometimes think that the rules of my sparring that I run are too strict," Zahabi continued. "But I've seen bones snap and joints be discloated and all sorts of gruesome stuff. When you spend so many hours in the gym, you realize the dangers that are out there. I think you need a good lion tamer in the gym."

"Healing an injury is one thing, but preventing it is the better thing, the better avenue."

Penick's Analysis: This doesn't mean St-Pierre will be out further than November, but it is a cautious take on his recovery, with Zahabi unwilling to saddle St-Pierre with an official timetable. Hopefully his November return is still realistic, and perhaps it'll be quicker than that, but it's reasonable to say he can't be sure until he sees where St-Pierre's at in his sparring. Everyone's hoping for the best, of course, but with injuries like this it's always best to be cautious.