LAS VEGAS -- UFC president Dana White says he will "super pissed" if newly crowned middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre refuses to defend his title.
Arguably the greatest martial artist of all time, St-Pierre (26-2) returned from a four-year absence earlier this month at UFC 217, submitting Michael Bisping in the third round of their middleweight title fight.
Since then, St-Pierre has been noncommittal regarding a unification bout against interim middleweight champion Robert Whittaker -- even though he has confirmed it's written into his UFC contract.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, White said he expects St-Pierre to honor that contract. He added the two were scheduled to speak later in the day.
"[We included it in the contract] because he was jumping all over the map -- 170 [pounds], 185 [pounds]," White said. "I said, 'I'll tell you what. You want to come in and take this shot against Bisping, I'm cool with that. But you've got to defend the title. You can't drop the title after the fight and go somewhere else.'
"My thing is, to be the man, you've got to beat the man. When a man just goes away -- now, if a guy is on a run, undefeated, wants to retire with the belt, that's one thing. It's another to say, 'I'm gonna drop this one and jump to 170 [pounds] now.' I don't like that."
When asked what will happen if that is indeed St-Pierre's intention, White said, "I'm gonna be super pissed and I don't know where we go from there."
St-Pierre, 36, has not definitively stated he won't fight Whittaker, but has dropped several hints that may not be his first choice.
On a conference call shortly after UFC 217, St-Pierre said he needed to discuss his next move with the UFC and added, "things change all the time [in MMA]."
St-Pierre is also a longtime welterweight, and said adding weight to compete at 185 pounds was a difficult process. As of Tuesday, White said he wasn't buying that as reason to leave the division.
"Listen, you looked at Bisping like he was a tuneup," White said. "You got your tuneup. There's nothing but animals now at 185 and 170.
"There's no good options to sit there and try to handpick people. You can't in this sport. They're all nasty. You're a fighter. Get in there and see who you can beat. You wanted to f---ing come back. Welcome back. It's ugly."
Additionally, White reiterated there have been no discussions regarding a superfight between St-Pierre and lightweight champion Conor McGregor (21-3) -- and he would oppose that fight anyway.
"The Conor thing, there's never been one discussion ever about Conor," White said. "That's all Internet s---. Every fight with Conor is a big-money fight and Tony Ferguson is next in line."