Georges St-Pierre surprises by explaining what led him to hang up his MMA gloves

Georges St-Pierre was UFC welterweight and middleweight champion. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram

Considered by many as one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, Georges St-Pierre surprised by announcing his permanent retirement after winning his second UFC title in 2017. In a sincere stance, the Canadian revealed the reason for having hung up his gloves and talked about his health problems generated when migrating to medium weight (up to 83,9kg.) at the time.

“The reason I actually retired was because the weight gain demanded of me. I started to develop a disease called ulcerative colitis. It is inflammation in the intestine. In my last fight, when I faced Michael Bisping, I tried to eat, gain weight, and I have a lot of difficulty gaining weight. I forced myself to eat and the doctor told me that was probably why I developed the disease”, revealed St-Pierre in an interview with the podcast 'Pound 4 Pound'.

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As he continued his speech, the former champion stated that after long treatment, he is now cured.

“When I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, in terms of stress, I was relieved, because I would go to the bathroom and there would be a lot of blood. I thought maybe I had cancer. When I started intermittent fasting, all my symptoms disappeared. I was taking severe medication, and today I am no longer taking any medication,” he concluded.

Georges St-Pierre returned in 2017, finishing Michael Bisping. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook

In his last appearance at welterweight (up to 77,1kg) in 2013, the fighter defeated Johnny Hendricks at UFC 167, in a decision that generated a lot of controversy at the time. After the victory, the athlete stated that he would step away from the sport and gave up the belt.

Four years later, the Canadian made an unprecedented appearance in the middleweight division, when Michael Bisping he was the category champion. Scheduled to perform at UFC 217, St-Pierre submitted the Englishman in the third round and once again relinquished the title, announcing his definitive retirement from his career.