Tyron Woodley Defends Welterweight Title at UFC New York | MMAWeekly.com

Although he’d been angling for “big money” fights, newly minted UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley will have to settle for simply putting his belt on the line at UFC 205 on Nov. 12 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Woodley, during Friday’s UFC Hidalgo weigh-in show on Fox Sports 1, announced that he would defend his belt for the first time against top contender Stephen Thompson when the UFC lands in New York for the first time.

“I’ll be taking on Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson in New York City, Nov. 12, UFC 205, Madison Square Garden,” he declared.

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Thompson had tried to put the fight together the night Woodley won the belt from Robbie Lawler at UFC 201 in late July. Woodley, however, rebuked Thompson’s call-out, instead taking aim at the likes of Georges St-Pierre, who has said he wants to return to the Octagon, and Nick Diaz, who had been on suspension for 18 months.

It appears that UFC officials instead want Woodley to defend his belt against a current contender, and made the fight with Thompson.

The bout joins the likes of Donald Cerrone vs. Kelvin Gastelum and Tim Kennedy vs. Rashad Evans at UFC 205.

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