This is why i always wonder what people are actually referring to by 'style' when they say things like 'Woodley is a bad stylistic matchup for Maia'. It's like, saying Chavez Jr. is a bad stylistic matchup for Canelo because they are both boxers.
Obviously what you see on the surface level is, Maia's game is to wrestle people down, and Woodley has good wrestling. But what happens when you actually look at their behavior in the cage? You know, the style with which they conduct their fighting?
Pretty much all of Woodley's habits as a fighter play into Maia's game. Whether it's his tendency to be passive and let his opponent go first, to his tendency to keep his back near the cage, or the fact that his basically only offensive weapons, the overhand right, and to a much lesser extent, rear leg leg kick, both expose one to takedown threats; the former being exactly the sort of punch Maia has gameplaned for years on shooting under. Even if Tyron manages to sprawl on him, unlike many opponents, this does not mean the end of things, as Maia will just scoot his hips in for the re-shot. And if he holds himself up on the wall to avoid the single leg, Maia has very effective takedowns against the cage, either his grapevine trip/sweep out, or his go behind.
Most discussions about this fight focus on potential difficulties Maia might have in imposing his offense on Woodley, but very few seem to be thinking about the flip side: how is Woodley going to engage his own offense? Using his most effective tools exposes him to Maia's own attacks, but the converse is not necessarily true. Woodley may well be able to escape a clinch or fend off a takedown, but that just means Maia can try again, and he is not risking anything by trying again. Indeed, doing so would be his primary method of countering the risk.
To be honest, barring a crumble johnson situation, i don't actually see a way for Woodley to win this fight.
