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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) This Saturday, September 8, 2018, Tyron Woodley, the welterweight champion, will defend his British opponent against British striker Darren Till, at UFC 228.
Woodley is a hard man to read. Is he a champion as dominant as the three title defenses suggest? Given the incredibly competitive nature of both Thompson's fights and the recent fall of Demian Maia, it is questionable at this point. I think a unification match with interim champion Colby Covington would certainly have answered the question of how good Woodley is – for better or for worse – but Till is an even more intriguing opponent .
There is a chance that Till's defensive fight will be nil, a situation that will not be much for Woodley. It is also possible that Till is the real deal and will force Woodley out of cruise control, which, in my opinion, is the best possible outcome for everyone involved.
Let's take a closer look at Woodley's skills:
Striking
Woodley's approach to kickboxing is extremely simple. Overall. it involves a lot of patience, excellent timing and the kind of explosive right hand that can flatten an elephant.
Woodley's approach is rather unusual for an explosive wrestler, as he is perfectly happy to sit at a distance and wait for his opponents to come to him. He is very patient at a distance or against the fence, sometimes at fault. Against men like Rory MacDonald and – oddly – Jake Shields, Woodley has dragged far too long at the end of his opponent's strikes, waiting for their over-commitment. Instead, they simply beat him by the volume.
Of the six rounds that Woodley lost to "Wonderboy", it's still an accurate description. Woodley would clock a couple of punches or low shots, but he would spend too much time waiting for his opponent to work with a forehand.
That being said, Woodley can be very effective even if his opponent does not lead the charge. When Woodley is fresh and punctual, he actively pretends to face his opponent with the threat of a sudden surge in his right hand.
Woodley sits almost exclusively on his right hand to do damage. This is not exactly the case, but it is a style that has worked many times for many fighters. Basically, it boils down to whether the fighter can or can not put his right into play, and Woodley has some strategies to that end. (GIF).
Woodley uses the threat of landing to put the right hand. It can be as simple as lowering the level before throwing an overhand, but it's usually not a cause and effect with Woodley. Instead, Woodley changes level, shoots and repeats, forcing his opponent to try to follow the quick threats of the double leg and right hand. Often, Woodley will also mix an uppercut with his attack, which can be disastrous for an opponent who dodges at the wrong time.
In addition to a sudden combination, Woodley has powerful kicks. Against most orthodox opponents, Woodley is keen on outside kick, which is more than capable of destabilizing his opponent. In front of the opponents of Southpaw, Woodley can open more and kick the head and body.
Woodley's kicks are rarely set up or differ from conventional kicks, but they have a major impact.
If Woodley convinces his opponent to join him, he is in a good position to counter his massive right hand. When he tries to slip and hit or block and come back, Woodley's counter-right is his best weapon (GIF).
The counter-right earned Woodley most of his real victories. Against Dong Hyun Kim, he simply watched the South Korean move forward and try a back fist without rhyme or reason. Being a top athlete with a good reaction time, Woodley simply interrupted the slow rotation with his fist.
Woodley's brutal victory over Koscheck was a bit more technical. While Koscheck was lying too much on his right hand, Woodley blocked but stayed in position to counter. With his opponent out of position, Woodley could easily blow up "Kos" in unconsciousness (GIF).
In front of Thompson, Woodley's right hand found his mark several times. At best, Woodley used the jab to keep Thompson honest because "Wonderboy" would be at the edge of Woodley's range in hopes of getting him out. As Thompson was forced to take greater risks to land, Woodley found the right hand counter more often. In addition, even a striking master like Thompson has momentary defensive failures, and it takes a big fighter like Woodley to identify those moments and land (GIF).
Fight
Woodley has major references in wrestling. As a two-time All American and Big 12 champion, Woodley is without a doubt one of the most talented wrestlers in the 170-pound division.
At UFC, Woodley only relied on his fight to win a single game. Against Carlos Condit, Woodley is really well beaten before the end of the fight, a bit premature. Thanks to his athletic side, Woodley was able to quickly bounce back and break Condit with hard knocks and counter hits when the kickboxer tried to get into his own combinations.
In addition, Woodley has fully used his fight. Whenever Condit was particularly aggressive or supported Woodley in the fence, he could only change level and double his power with his lanky opponent. One of these dismantling finally tore Condit's knee, ending the fight. (GIF).
In both of his fights with Thompson, Woodley managed to land two pitches. These attempts earned him a pair of heats, but it also seemed to slow Woodley a bit, as he did nothing more in the round after struggling. Against an attacker like Till, it will be interesting to see if Woodley can fight consistently for five rounds at the age of 36.
Back at Strikeforce, Woodley's fight approach was much simpler. While lowering his opponents and forcing him to bombard under the threat of cracks, Woodley plunged forward in single and double legs against the fence. From there, Woodley managed to lift and slam even the most stubborn enemies, revealing himself to be quite comfortable from the first position. In addition, Woodley showed a powerful play of strength, making it difficult enough to stay with him for a while without being placed on the mat. (GIF).
Defensively, Woodley is a brick wall. He is low on the ground and muscular, which makes shooting difficult. For example, Jake Shields spent a lot of time trying to fight for a double leg, but he just could not move "T-Wood". Only Rory MacDonald has managed to win in recent years and the Canadian has accomplished this feat largely because of his total control of the shot.
Against Demian Maia, Woodley's strength was very noticeable. Maia is excellent at hanging on attacks and sucking opponents in her world, but Woodley repeatedly cut her off an angle or simply pushed Maia. This is not usually a tactic that works on the Brazilian, but Woodley is a special athlete.
One of the most interesting aspects of Woodley's willingness to fight back is that it affects wrestling exchanges. Woodley is not afraid to be dragged down the fence – his strength and skill make him a rock from that position – but having his back to the gate ensures his opponent does not. If Woodley is able to slip under a punch or kick, he has about 30 feet of space to complete the withdrawal before his opponent can rely on the fence to stay upright .
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
A brown belt under Ricardo Liborio, Woodley has a trio of bid wins on his record. Unfortunately, all this happened in early 2009 at Woodley's career, and Woodley's approach in recent years has limited his chances of winning more bids.
Back in these early fights, Woodley was simply at another level in terms of athleticism and fighting technique from his opponent. This may be true at a certain level today as well, but these regional opponents were much less prepared to deal with these disadvantages. In short, Woodley was able to pick up these opponents, throw them over their heads and submerge them before finalizing the bid. Against the best in the world, it's rarely so easy.
Surprisingly, Woodley returned to his jiu-jitsu attack after years in the first game with Stephen Thompson. After shaking Karateka, he found his opponent's neck and grabbed a deep handle, pulling the seagull guard and attempting to smother the guillotine. Unfortunately, taking control of Woodley and choosing to skip full custody made the submission difficult to complete. In addition, Woodley attempted to finish pulling through the guillotine, which is more difficult than sitting in the throttle. (GIF).
Despite the technical error, it's actually a pretty promising sign that Woodley was ready to give first place for a chance to end the fight because he clearly has confidence in his offensive jiu-jitsu.
Conclusion
If Woodley can get rid of Till, it's his fourth title defense in a row, which is a huge feat. Until the fight happens, it's hard to tell if that's when the MMA world will begin to respect Woodley as champion. Fortunately, with another title or two, it does not matter, because Woodley makes a place in the story regardless of what people think about "T-Wood".
Andrew Richardson, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt, is a professional fighter who trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, California. In addition to learning alongside world-class talent, Andrew has spotted opponents and developed winning strategies for many of the sport's greatest fighters.
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