Gilbert Burns has made the claim that Tyron Woodley turned down the chance to fight him.
Woodley was scheduled to meet Leon Edwards this Saturday night (March 21). Those plans went awry when Edwards pulled out of the bout once UFC London was moved to the United States over fears of the coronavirus.
Gilbert Burns Says Woodley Turned Down Fight
Burns was one of the fighters who threw his name in the hat to serve as a potential replacement opponent. Unfortunately for him, he took to Twitter to reveal he likely won’t be getting the bout.
“Man. Shame on this former champ he said He is on killer mode! No you’re not you don’t want no smoke! I will see u soon @TWooodley thanks @danawhite @seanshelby and my manager @AliAbdelaziz00 to try to make this fight! I’m always available to fight but this guys talk to much.”
MMA News’ Cole Shelton then revealed that the plan as of now is attempting to book Woodley vs. Rafael dos Anjos.
Burns just competed this past Saturday night (March 14). He defeated Demian Maia via first-round TKO. Burns has now gone 7-1 in his last eight outings and is riding a five-fight winning streak.
The UFC still hasn’t determined a new location and venue for their event this weekend. UFC president Dana White has been adamant that the UFC will continue to hold events unless there is a complete shutdown in the United States. Reports surfaced claiming that the promotion even sent out emails to managers in hopes of getting talent from the regional scene to fill up this weekend’s card.
As it stands now, 11 of the 13 planned bouts for this weekend have been scrapped. Of the 11 canceled bouts, three fighters are looking for new opponents. The two bouts that are still on are Marvin Vettori vs. Darren Stewart and Paul Craig vs. Ryan Spann. Woodley, Kevin Holland, and Jake Collier are the three fighters looking for new opponents.
