UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley is current preparing to defend the gold against an opponent to be named this July.
Woodley would like to defend the title against former UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre, whom he calls a coward for wanting to fight UFC Middleweight Champion Michael Bisping.
“I’m the best welterweight in the world and I feel like Georges St-Pierre should’ve fought me,” Woodley said on The MMA Hour. “He should’ve come back (to welterweight). Fighting Bisping, I think that was the cowardly move. He’s going to fight someone who doesn’t have the ability to concuss him like I would, or Johny Hendricks would, or Robbie Lawler would. That’s why he went (up in weight). If Stephen Thompson would’ve beaten me, I guarantee that his first fight back would’ve been against Stephen Thompson, a similar karate-style fighter that he’s probably seen a million times, he’s trained with him, he doesn’t have the one-punch KO power, he’s not going to submit him, he’s not going to stop his shot. It’s the safer fight for a big payday. So with that said, I just kinda raise my eyebrows, the fact that he would go up a weight class when there’s a willing, dominant champion that wants to take you on that’s excited about the fight. It surprised me, but hey, if it’s Demian Maia first or if it’s Georges St-Pierre first, everybody’s going to get it at the end of the day and I’m just excited to be where I’m at right now.”
The potential fight between GSP and Bisping is still on according to the fighters, despite what UFC President Dana White has claimed.
A reason that the champion wants to fight the returning GSP is to prove that he’s the best fighter in the world.
“Georges St-Pierre is always going to be that, no matter the money, no matter the city,” Woodley said. “If it’s in freakin’ Montreal, if it’s freakin’ for $100,000. No matter what the situation is, that’s always going to be the best fight. He was the best in the world. If he’s still talking about competing, that’s always going to hang over my head. I can’t honestly say I’m the best welterweight in the world knowing that he’s still wanting to fight, so that’s going to take precedence over everything.”
While a bout with GSP would be on the top of the list for Woodley, the Brazilian submission artist in Damien Maia is the top contender according to the UFC President.
