White says Georges St-Pierre not kept out of post-UFC 167 presser

SACRAMENTO – UFC President Dana White said Georges St-Pierre’s recollection of his attendance at the post-UFC 167 press conference is not entirely accurate.

“A little bit was lost in translation there when Georges was telling that story,” White said following Saturday’s UFC on FOX 9, which took place at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento, Calif.

While announcing his decision to vacate the welterweight belt during a media teleconference this past Friday, St-Pierre (25-2 MMA, 19-2 UFC), claimed PR officials from the UFC had attempted to keep him out of the presser for the Nov. 16 pay-per-view event at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena.

White, however, said it wasn’t PR officials that were trying to keep him from the gathering, but event medical personnel, who were concerned for his safety following his split decision over Johny Hendricks (15-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) in the headliner.

St-Pierre took several big punches to the head en route to victory and afterward claimed he didn’t remember portions of the fight.

Prior to the press conference, White said he was informed by his PR staff that St-Pierre had left for the hospital. What happened next, he said, had nothing to with the UFC.

“When he was trying to go to the press conference, the doctors were telling him no, that he had to go to the hospital,” White said. “He was saying, ‘No, I want to go to the press conference.’”

Of course, St-Pierre’s wish was fulfilled. He appeared before reporters and spoke about serious emotional issues that prompted him to announce post-fight that he wanted to step away from MMA. He declined to identify the issues troubling him.

During his official announcement of his intention to take time off, however, he said his life had become a “zoo” and would return to the sport on his own terms.

White said he respected the now-former champ’s position. But at Saturday’s press conference, he clarified that he wasn’t dictating his own terms when it came the fighter’s public appearances.

“We don’t tell guys, ‘You can’t go to the press conference,’” he said. “We never told guys you can’t go, especially Georges St-Pierre. Nobody’s going to tell Georges St-Pierre after a title fight that he can’t go to the press conference.

“So I just want to clear that stupidity up. There’s always some conspiracy theory, like, ‘I was mad, so he wasn’t allowed to come to the press conference.’”

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Dana White)