The UFC president Dana White has revealed that Georges St-Pierre will be sidelined indefinitely after coming down with colitis, an inflammation of the inner lining of the colon.

St-Pierre managed to put together one of the most fairytale-esque returns imaginable when he defeated Michael Bisping at UFC 217 after nearly four years on the sidelines. The night, as a whole, was one of the most memorable occasions in the sport’s history, but for St-Pierre to recapture UFC gold in such stunning fashion allowed him to leave Madison Square Garden that night with the bulk of the praise on offer.

Now, despite his status as the greatest welterweight of all-time, GSP’s finds himself 15lbs above with the middleweight strap tied firmly around his waist and though many have called for him to defend his title against the interim-champion Robert Whittaker, there have been considerable rumours that have tied Georges to a step down to his old division and a match-up with its champion Tyron Woodley, among other prospects outside of the 185lb weight-class.

Unfortunately, according to the UFC’s president Dana White – who spoke to MMAJunkie in a recent interview – St-Pierre will now be sidelined indefinitely after contracting colitis.

“They called me yesterday and I think it’s out that he has colitis. So he’s out for a minute.”

The timing of St-Pierre’s return coincided with something of a drought in the promotion’s well of star-power and with the futures of Conor McGregor, Jon Jones and Ronda Rousey completely unclear, this latest setback could be one that is felt massively as we watch 2017 draw to a close.

Cillian Cunningham, Pundit Arena

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