Schoolyard Motivation History’s most successful welterweight grew up as a shy boy who turned to martial arts to defend himself against relentless bullying at school. Finding that he had a knack for combat sports, the future champion began training in karate, boxing, wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

Work Ethic GSP worked as a bouncer and garbage man to help pay his way through school, where he studied administration.

Quick Rise St-Pierre turned pro in January of 2002, and ran off five rapid-fire wins which earned him the nickname “Rush." Two years later, he entered the UFC. After two wins, he received a title shot against legendary welterweight champion Matt Hughes in October 2004. He did well before getting tapped to an armbar with one second to go in the opening round.

Winning (and Losing) the Title After rededicating himself to his training, GSP dominated the November 2006 title rematch against Hughes. At UFC 69, he lost the belt to 12-1 underdog Matt Serra. The loss changed GSP, and the ensuing transformation made him one of the most cerebral fighters in the UFC. St-Pierre blew through Josh Koscheck and Hughes (again) before routing Serra in a title rematch. That UFC 83 win was the Octagon's first outing in Montreal and St-Pierre's hometown fans went wild.

Sharp-Dressed Man He arrives at all press conferences sharply dressed in an expensive suit and tie; also routinely dons a suit and tie when arriving at the arena on fight night; widely respected for not only being an elite fighter but also a class act.

GSP P4P He has beaten a who’s-who of the best fighters of the past decade at 170 lbs., including Hughes, Koscheck, BJ Penn, Sean Sherk, Frank Trigg, Jon Fitch, Jake Shields and Carlos Condit.  St-Pierre is currently on an 12-fight win streak, with four of those wins coming over a past or present UFC champion. Although history may never make up its mind as to who is the greatest mixed martial artist ever, the name Georges St-Pierre will surely be in consideration.

Forced Hiatus The fighter's run of dominance was interrupted by a devastating December 2011 ACL injury. GSP did not fight from April 2011 to November 2012, and spent hours a day working with his customary diligence on rehab. Medical experts agreed that even 10 years ago the procedures to repair the champion’s knee simply did not exist and GSP would have been forced into retirement. Since his return, GSP has beaten both interim champ Condit and bitter rival Nick Diaz.

Captain Canada One of the most popular Canadian athletes ever, according to various magazine and online fan polls

Celluloid Champ Outside of the Octagon, GSP he has appeared in several action movies and in 2014 will fight Captain America when he plays “Batroc” in Marvel’s Captain America: The Winter Solider blockbuster.

Dinosaur of the Sport St-Pierre is an amateur paleontologist who is passionate about dinosaurs.

When and why did you start training for fighting? I started martial arts when I was six, doing Kyokushin karate.  When I started training for MMA, I started wrestling with the national team and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with Nova Uniao. I now train in wrestling, BJJ, Muay Thai, and boxing.  When I first met Stephane Patry and his team I decided I wanted to become a champion in this sport.

What ranks and titles have you held? Two-time and former UFC Welterweight Champion, former TKO Canadian welterweight champion. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black belt under Bruno Fernandes.

Do you have any heroes? My MMA hero is Randy Couture.

What is your favorite technique? I love taking my opponent down. Once I have him on the ground I am dangerous with ground and pound and submissions.

What does it mean for you to fight in the UFC? Fighting in the UFC has been a dream come true for me - even now I'm still amazed!  The UFC has allowed me to develop and mature as a fighter and I have so many opportunities that I never would have had otherwise because I’m a UFC fighter! 

Did you go to college and if so what degree did you earn? I was going to get a degree in administration but I put that on hold to concentrate on my fighting career.

What was your job before you started fighting? Before I started fighting I was a student, but now I’m fortunate enough to train full-time.

• On a 13 fight winning streak