UFC Hall-of-Famer Georges St-Pierre admits he doesn't miss fighting one bit.
The former two-division champion announced his retirement from mixed martial arts in February 2019 after failing to land a historic showdown with lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov.
St-Pierre, 39, has flirted with the idea of returning to the octagon but has appeared to have changed his stance.
He told the UFC's official website: “I never liked to fight, and I’m not lying when I say it.
"I never enjoyed my time in the octagon, never a second. I did it because I loved to win, I loved the benefits of it, and I loved the freedom.
"Back then, I was young, there was the money, the girls, the fame, the access to things nobody had. It was the freedom, that’s why I did it.
"I never did it because I loved to compete and fight. I hated it to the highest level. It’s so stressful that it was unbearable for me."
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St-Pierre, who is considered by many to be the greatest of all time, loved the plaudits and accolades that came with competing but not the fisticuffs.
He added: "I loved the rewards. The greater the risk, the bigger the reward, and that’s why I did it, and I was very good at it and I took advantage of it.
"Now, I miss the rewards, I miss the feeling of winning. But I don’t miss the feeling of fighting, not even a second.”
St-Pierre's comments come amid speculation of a super-fight with the undefeated Nurmagomedov being back on the table.
Nurmagomedov, 32, retired from MMA last October after beating Justin Gaethje but is set to have crunch talks with UFC president Dana White in Abu Dhabi in the coming days.
White is hoping to convince the Dagestani destroyer to reverse his decision to hang up his gloves and make one last venture into the octagon.
Nurmagomedov's late father – Abdulmanap – wanted his son to close out his career with a legacy fight against St-Pierre.
And that potentially could be the fight White offers The Eagle to entice him back to the cage.
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