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White: Whittaker in 'serious condition' after staph infection

Will Russell / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The medical issues that took middleweight champion Robert Whittaker out of the main event for UFC 221 in his home country of Australia are worse than they initially sounded.

The promotion announced earlier in January that Whittaker was dealing with multiple injuries. Following UFC 220 on Saturday night, UFC president Dana White said Whittaker is in serious condition due to a staph infection that was not treated properly.

"He had (a) staph infection in his stomach," White told TSN's Aaron Bronsteter. "From what I understand, it wasn't treated properly and started to eat away parts of his organs. He's in serious condition, so it's going to be a minute before he's back, I think.

"Hopefully it turns around quick, but that stuff is life-threatening if not treated the right way."

Yoel Romero replaced Whittaker in the main event against Luke Rockhold, and they'll fight for the interim middleweight title in February. Whittaker defeated Romero for the interim title last July and was awarded the undisputed belt after Georges St-Pierre vacated the championship in December.

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