UFC President Dana White says he never apologized to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre following his split decision victory over Johny Hendricks at UFC 167 last month.
Despite media reports to the contrary, per MMA Mania, White claims that never happened and took a shot at Kristof Midoux, GSP‘s mentor, for perpetuating the story.
Check out what White said when asked at The Ultimate Fighter Season 18 Finale post-fight press conference if he ever apologized to “Rush,” courtesy of Fighters Only:
I had heard that, but no, that’s not true. I have not watched the fight yet. I still haven’t watched the fight. This (Midoux) guy’s like one of the new Kardashian sisters. This guy pops up out of nowhere, and now he’s everywhere. Realistically, I’m not forcing Georges to do anything, but Georges has to defend his title. He was off for over a year already with ACL surgery. So if people have problems with it, I could [not] give a s–- if they like it or don’t. I don’t care what peoples’ opinions of that are.
After St-Pierre notched his ninth successful title defense, he told color commentator Joe Rogan he needed some time off since he was “going crazy,” per MMA Junkie.
However, shortly afterwards, White stated that “GSP has to defend the belt or retire,” and clearly he isn’t backing off on that stance.
The Tristar Gym standout currently boasts a 12-fight win streak, though pundits widely believe the judges got the decision wrong against “Bigg Rigg.”
As White tries to mesh out the details to make St-Pierre vs. Hendricks II happen, both top-tier welterweights await their next assignment inside the cage.
Was Midoux really lying or exaggerating when he said White apologized to GSP, or is White now trying to save face now that the news is out there?
John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
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