Tyron Woodley retained his UFC Welterweight Title in a “fight of the night” performance against Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson at UFC 205, keeping the championship thanks to a majority draw.
While a draw usually leads to a rematch, with Frankie Edgar/Gray Maynard being a prime example, Woodley himself is not committed as of yet.
“I’m going to talk to my management team and see what’s next for me,” Woodley said at the UFC 205 post-fight press conference.
A fight that Woodley seems interested in most is a bout with two division champion Conor McGregor The two did got into a bit of a squabble leading into UFC 205.
“I don’t know if Mr. McGregor wants to go for a third belt. It looked like he was talking a little noise in the back, so we’ll see,” said Woodley. "He tall. He has long arms. He’s got good timing, and when you’ve got good timing you can place good punches. But I’m 100-percent positive that he’s never been hit with the shots that I will hit him with, I just don’t think Conor understands the pressure that I can put on him, the power that I can put on him and all the different attacks.”
Woodley says that it may be a lose-lose situation if he fights McGregor, no matter what the outcome of the bout may be.
“If I beat him, everybody’s going to say that I was supposed to beat him, a former featherweight. If I lose to him, obviously, we know what’s going to happen then. If he wants the fight, we can sign it right now. I’m good on the fight. I just don’t think it’s a good idea for him to fight me,” said Woodley.
While Woodley would sign onto fight McGregor, he also understands that it could hold up potential title opportunities for top contenders like Damian Maia and Stephen Thompson.
“I’m just going to sit back, go back to the drawing board and talk to my management team and see what’s important,” he added. “Obviously, this is sport, but it’s also entertainment. If Conor McGregor wants to fight me, I think all you guys would want to see that fight. It’s going to suck for Wonderboy and Demian Maia because those guys are going to feel like they deserve the shot. But maybe those guys can fight each other in the meantime. We’ll see.”
Woodley last defended his belt against Stephen Thompson at UFC 205, which took place on November 12 of this year.
