According to a report Tuesday morning on Sherdog.com, Tyron Woodley is hoping to parlay his vicious knockout of Jay Hieron Saturday night into a very busy year inside of the Octagon. He has even gone as far as to tell UFC President Dana White that should either Carlos Condit or Rory McDonald bow out of their scheduled March 16 clash, he would be able to step in as a replacement. In fact, he is particularly excited about the possibility of being able to face Rory McDonald.
“I want to fight him,” Woodley told the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Beatdown” show. “If anything happens with Carlos Condit, God forbid, or something happens with that fight, I already told Dana White.”
Just because he relishes the opportunity to fight Rory McDonald does not mean he thinks the fight will be an easy one. In fact, he thinks this may be the best chance to get him because of his continuous improvement.
“Nobody’s calling him out for a reason,” Tyron Woodley said. “Because he’s freaking unreal. But if you wait, you think he’s going to stop getting better? In two years, this kid’s probably going to be one of the best fighters in the game. I’d rather knock his butt off now like I knocked off [Tarec Saffiedine’s] just before he got the Strikeforce gold.”
Another possibility being mentioned as a future opponent for Woodley is Demian Maia, a fighter who was also victorious this past weekend. However, that fight is not one that offers much intrigue for Woodley.
“Everybody’s been Tweeting about it,” he said. “I don’t mind the fight. If he fights me the way he fought Fitch, then it’s not that dangerous of a fight. He just took him down and jumped on his back.”
The ability of Maia to take down Fitch was not much of a surprise for Woodley. Not impressed, he said the canvas that night was "super slippery."
“There was almost no traction and no way to defend,” Woodley said. “When [Maia] got on [Fitch’s] back, he just had no answer for it. I think Demian Maia’s tough. He just didn’t really impress me very much. I think if you match us up, it’s going to be a boring fight and we’re both going to get hella flak. I would rather fight [Nick] Diaz, Rory MacDonald, Condit. I would rather fight one of those guys, to be honest. They’re going to bring out the fight. They’re going to make me fight harder.”
Although nothing is certain at this point, Tyron Woodley doesn't think it much matters. Eventually, he believes, he will end up at the top of his division.
“I’m not running from trying to earn it,” he said. “I’m not running from taking the fights. I’ll get there. I think definitely my talent level is definitely top 10. I think my thirst and hunger wants to fight the top five.”
Comments