With Georges St-Pierre officially out of the title mix, following the relinquishment of his UFC middleweight world title, the UFC is putting on an exciting main event set for UFC 221. Interim champion Robert Whittaker and top ranked Luke Rockhold will now fight for the middleweight world title. Early Tuesday, the UFC held the first official pre-fight press conference for the event, and things got intense as Rockhold and Whittaker came face-to-face for the very staredown.
UFC 221: Whittaker vs. Rockhlold is set for February 10, at the Perth Arena, in Perth, Australia. The night’s main card will air live on pay-per-view.
GSP shocked the world last week when he officially withdrew from the title unification bout with Whittaker, giving up the title he’d just won at UFC 217.
In a prepared statement the former two-division champion stated, “My fight at UFC 217 was one of the greatest nights of my life but I now need to take some time to focus on my health. Out of respect to the athletes and the sport, I don’t want to hold up the division. I will be giving up my belt and once I’m healthy I look forward to working with the UFC to determine what’s next in my career.”
The future is still unknown for St-Pierre, but luckily the UFC has given fight fans a suitable replacement main event at UFC 221.
