Tyron Woodley planning move to 185 this year: ‘People at middleweight need to watch out’

KazDibiase

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On the Ariel Helwani MMA Show, the welterweight champion revealed that his plans for 2019 include title defenses against Usman and Covington, and then possibly a jump up to middleweight to chase a second title.

“Those aren’t my decisions to make,” Woodley said about the order of his title defenses. “I’m just the welterweight champion of the world so when somebody steps up and thinks they want it, I’ve got to put them down. So Kamaru Usman, Colby Covington, and whoever else, this year I’ve got to fight those guys, this is just the order the UFC wanted to do it. . .

“People at middleweight, they need to watch out too. I might slide on one of y’all by the end of the year.”


A move to middleweight could be highly productive for Woodley, after all, the two men poised to fight for the title next are both former welterweights. Kelvin Gastelum had a successful run at 170 pounds, when he could make the weight, and current champion Robert Whittaker began his career winning the welterweight tournament on The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes. In fact, Whittaker’s last loss was to the man Woodley mauled twice over, Stephen Thompson, and Woodley already owns a win over Gastelum in a bout the King’s MMA product missed weight by 10 pounds for. Whittaker and Gastelum face each other at UFC 234 for “Bobby Knuckles’” 185-pound title, and with no crystal clear contender lined up, Woodley thinks he could fit in nicely.

“Why not?” asked Woodley. “What better year? Wipe out the division clean, welterweight, and go up there and either beat ‘Fatsum’ up again or take out Robert Whittaker. They’re both welterweights anyway, they just don’t know how to cut weight.”

Of course, Woodley has been seeking big opportunities like this since winning the title at UFC 201, but they have, so far, eluded him. At various points in time, Woodley has called for fights with Conor McGregor, Georges St-Pierre, Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz, and Michael Bisping, all without success. But if he can defend his welterweight title two more times this year, Woodley believes that the UFC may finally have to give him his due and he may finally break through as the superstar he believes himself to be.


“At the end of the day, what is the fight for?” Woodley said. “Do you want me to fight more? I want to fight more. Do you want me to become this superstar? I am a superstar. I just need the push it, I need the machine to get behind me a little bit more, and from the conversations I had, I believe that’s going to happen this year. Whooping up Usman, whooping up Colby, and then finishing out with one more fight at the end of the year, I think that’s gonna be a great year for me. It’ll be the first time I’m up for Fighter of the Year, so that’s what I’m excited about.”


https://www.mmafighting.com/platfor...year-people-at-middleweight-need-to-watch-out
 
Wasnt there a thread about this?
 
Can you imagine bald goof's face if T-Wood became 2 divisions champ?
 
whittaker would kill him

guy cant go 5 competitive rounds without their being resting points in the fight, and his output wont cut it at a higher weight class because his power wont be as much as a factor. we'll see though, id love to see whittaker add woodleys name to his resume
 
Can you imagine bald goof's face if T-Wood became 2 divisions champ?
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Inb4 someone unnecessarily tells us their feelings about why they don't like Woodley
 
Both Whittaker and Gastelum beat Woodley at 185.
 
Woodley cleans 185 div easily
 
I doubt he is as competitive as others think he will be at 185.
 
Can you imagine bald goof's face if T-Wood became 2 divisions champ?

Dana might kill himself. Or he might just give up on trying to take Woodley's belt and admit defeat.

It's not a crazy thought seeing where 185 is right now. That division is old af.
 
Inb4 someone unnecessarily tells us their feelings about why they don't like Woodley

I know right? At least love his plans.

The weirdest and most trivial things will either inexplicably get sherdoggers off or royally piss them off.

If you live your life right and don't let little things bother you, I can't imagine how you can't like or love most of the champs right now, if not all of them (at the very least, their work inside the cage).

I hope for Tyron to accomplish all his goals, and hopefully in doing so: leaves behind the lameass diss that is calling Gastelum "Fastum" lol.

The guy does great work inside the cage, I can only recall short periods of what (at a glance) seemed to be inactivity...against fighters with DANGEROUS counterstriking games like Wonderboy and prime Rory Mac.

It was really just him working, adapting and thinking a smart game, measuring his opponents reactions and everything else that he felt he should include in his tactics and strategies.

Sure, the time spent doing that instead of rushing his opponents like mad dog is his fault, but only because he overwhelms his opponents to the point of him being given by them: the time and space he needs to do this...but isn't that what he should be doing in the first place? Why fight like a dog (and less often)when you can fight smart?
 
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I just don't see him beating the top 4-5 guys.

And there's already a guy up there that's basically the much bigger version of him in Romero.
 
I love the idea of it. Woodley needs to stop pursuing names like GSP and Diaz to build a legacy. He is capable of building his own. A win over Usman, Colby and the MW champ is enough to include him in the GOAT discussions. Woodley focussing in his own achievements is enough to entice GSP to fight him.
 
Finally I've been wanting to see Woodley at 185lbs.

Especially Woodley vs Whittaker.
 
If they bring in 165lbs, Woodley could be the first triple champ.

Or as schaub would say the "ch-ch-champ"
 
Woodley is a manlet, he'd get dwarfed by the MWs.
I'm calling it right now, Woodley isn't moving up.
 
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