Tyron Woodley is seeking a title shot in his next UFC bout, but there are doubts on whether the UFC will extend the immediate rematch courtesy to Woodley, even though he was the longest reigning current champion prior to losing the welterweight title to Kamaru Usman at UFC 235. And one of the doubters is Tyron Woodley’s head coach, Din Thomas:
“I think it will be a tougher road getting it back than it was the first time,” Thomas told ESPN. “I think the UFC is really going to make him work for it. I never really felt the UFC appreciated him as a champ. I could be wrong, but I never felt that way. And I think they’re gonna make him work to get another chance.”
Din Thomas does not expect that work to be easy. Some may suspect that if an immediate rematch is not in order for Tyron Woodley, he could be only a fight away. Given Thomas’s assessment of Woodley’s relationship with the UFC, Thomas is not so optimistic:
“I think they’ll make him fight another three fights before a title shot,” Thomas said. “What he’ll be willing to do, is take another fight and say, ‘Listen, if I knock this guy out like I’m capable of doing, you should give me the title shot.’ What I see happening is them telling him he needs to fight a couple times and them going back and forth over it for a while.”
The only thing that is for certain is that Dana White has announced Colby Covington will be the one receiving the first crack at Kamaru Usman. What Tyron Woodley will be doing as he awaits his chance at redemption, and how long he will be waiting, is anybody’s guess.
What do you believe it will take for Tyron Woodley to be granted a rematch against Kamaru Usman?
