UFC Fight Flashback: Woodley vs Thompson 1

>> Mike Goldberg: Madison Square Garden.
The champion Tyron Woodley.
The challenger, Stephen Thompson.
>> Joe Rogan: They're exchanging here.
Woodley hurt him!
How is Wonderboy surviving here?
And now Wonderboy is dropping bombs.
What a fight!
>> Mike: For the very first time,
the Octagon is inside the world's most famous arena:
Madison Square Garden!
>> It's an honor, it really is. It's an honor and a privilege
to be here tonight.
>> Guys--Muhammed Ali, Joe Frazier, Joe Lewis,
Jack Dempsey.
Goes on and on and on.
>> I watched so many boxing matches growing up in this arena
and now for our sport to be here, it's emotional,
I mean for all of us.
>> I'm actually very jealous of the fighters competing tonight.
This is a historic moment and the atmosphere is unreal.
[ dramatic music ]
>> Mike: Welterweight title on the line.
The Chosen One, Tyron Woodley looking to defend.
>> Joe: Tyron Woodley, the sensational Welterweight champion
who won the title with a brutal one-punch knockout
of the boogieman, Robbie Lawler.
>> Tyron: Winning the UFC title was always the first step
of my overall goal.
My overall goal is to go out here,
put the craziest performance on ever,
completely steal the stage, and to prove to believers
and the people that sacrificed for me to train,
to prove them right.
>> Joe: What Tyron Woodley brings to the table
is unparalleled athleticism, ridiculous knockout power,
and a wealth of experience inside the octagon.
>> Tyron: I'll be undeniably one of the best Welterweights,
if not the best Welterweight to ever grace the octagon.
That's my goal.
>> Joe: Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson might be
the best striker in MMA today.
He was an undefeated kickboxer,
and he's looked nothing short of sensational inside the octagon.
>> Stephen: I've been working my entire life
to get to where I am.
And there's a lot of things that happened in my past,
a lot of injuries.
I was told I'd probably never fight again,
but now I can think about it and say,
"You know what, you were wrong."
I have an indomitable spirit, and it's part of being champ.
>> Joe: Wonderboy has karate-style,
this unbelievable striking ability
that is very rare to see inside the octagon.
>> Stephen: I'm ready for five five-minute round war,
and I visualize my hand being raised at the end
with that belt goes around my waist.
>> Mike: Feature our only unbeaten UFC champion:
Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
>> Joe: Joanna Jedrzejczyk is a sensational example
of a world Muay Thai champion
who has learned the skills of MMA
and has been absolutely dominant inside the octagon.
She is brutal.
She is vicious.
She is precise.
And she is the champion.
>> Mike: Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
10-0 in her professional career.
>> Joe: She is very physically strong.
She's tough. She's durable.
She has a great striking background,
and she believes the time is now.
>> Mike: Kowalkiewicz said, "Joanna Jedrzejczyk has gone
from my idol to my archrival."
One of these women will leave the Strawweight champion.
Here we go!
>> Stephen: The key to beating Tyron Woodley tonight is getting to the punch,
being faster, being more explosive, more powerful.
And I can do that.
I have the abilities to do that.
>> Joe: Joanna's very confident, pressing forward here.
Oh, beautiful combination there
with the left hook to the right leg kick.
>> Mike: Man, they're firing away!
Wow!
>> Oh, she got tagged! She got tagged hard!
>> Mike: We've got ourselves a fight.
>> Tyron: I respect him as an opponent,
but he's gonna really hate that he has to fight me.
I'm gonna make everything in that fight so painful.
I'm gonna make him hate being in the octagon
because when people ask for you,
they better know what they signed up for,
and I think he's gonna get more than he signed up for.
>> Bruce Buffer: For the winner by unanimous decision
and... still
UFC Strawweight champion of the world:
Joanna Jedrzejczyk!
♪♪
>> Who's got my back?
>> I've got your back!
>> How do you feel?
>> Like a champ!
>> How do you feel?
>> Like a champ!
>> How do you feel?
>> Like a champ!
>> Team Woodley on three! One, two, three!
>> Team Woodley!
[ yelling ]
>> Stephen: You know, there's something my dad always tells me
every time I step out there that really calms me down.
He says, "Win or lose, your family's gonna love you.
Just go out there and have fun."
That always seems to calm me down.
You know, he's right.
No matter what, you know, win or lose, I've always got my family.
Got my friends back home.
They're gonna love me either way.
So just go out there and do my thing.
♪♪
>> Mike: Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson,
the challenger,
winner of seven straight.
>> Joe: He's got this sport karate-style.
We've been saying for a long time
is gonna be the next successful style in MMA.
One of the things that made him so good
was that he had that style,
his combined 57-0 kickboxing record,
and then started training with Chris Weidman.
Really worked on his wrestling, which made him more comfortable.
And the results have been absolutely tremendous.
>> Mike: Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson
looking to leave as the new champ.
>> Tyron: I know still to this day,
nobody has seen the complete 100%,
all wheels rolling, every cylinder firing.
They haven't seen the complete Tyron Woodley.
You know, Stephen "Wonderboy" want this belt
and he got another thing coming,
'cause this belt ain't going anywhere
until I get done fighting.
When I retire, I will retire as a champion.
>> Mike: Joe, no one believed in The Chosen One
more than The Chosen One.
In fact, he's the underdog tonight.
But Tyron Woodley has never doubted his skills.
>> Joe: What Tyron Woodley brings to the table
that makes him so terrifying
is his ability to close the distance.
It's second to none.
His knockout power is second to none.
>> Mike: And he has no doubt in his mind
he'll walk back out of the octagon
with that belt wrapped around his waist.
>> Bruce: This is the moment UFC fans
watching around the world have been waiting for.
>> We go hard or we go home, yeah!
>> Bruce: Five rounds for the UFC
Welterweight championship of the world!
>> Mike: Here we go!
>> Mike: The champion, Tyron Woodley.
The challenger, Stephen Thompson.
Fight scheduled for five five-minute rounds.
Here we go!
>> Thompson already, you can see that weird style.
He can kick you from way out there.
That's something that Woodley's finding out right now.
>> You got this, T-Wood!
>> Joe: This is a high-stakes game of chess right here.
There's the kick; Woodley catches it.
Big moment Woodley.
On top, huge.
>> Settle in.
>> Joe: And now Woodley's pounding on him.
Big shots to the liver. >> Mike: Big shots.
>> Joe: Now he might try to move him to the mounted crucifix.
Trying to step over that half guard.
The left leg is still trapped.
But Tyron in complete control here on top.
>> That's your game right there, baby.
>> Joe: It's a lot of control time right now for Tyron Woodley.
>> Let him burn! He's burning!
>> Joe: This is not a good feeling for Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson.
He probably would've liked to have gotten back to his feet
a long time ago.
And this helps Tyron Woodley.
>> Don't look for big punches. Many!
>> Joe: But he's doing a good job of avoiding the big shots.
He's taken some hard shots to the body,
but nothing to the head.
No elbows, no cuts.
Look at the distance he can achieve.
>> Let go of his shorts! Let go of his shorts!
>> Mike: Hard shots to the midsection.
>> Joe: Oh! Now he landed one to the face.
>> Ooh! There you go.
>> Mike: Again he connects!
>> Joe: Big elbow. Two elbows.
[horn blowing]
Yeah, Wonderboy's battered.
>> Mike: Bloodied up.
>> Come here! Come here!
Sit down! Sit down! Sit down!
>> Breathe.
>> Deep breaths, Ty.
>> Rock a bye baby, come on!
>> It's all you, baby. It's all you.
>> Mike: Round two.
Wonderboy likes to throw kicks.
Kicks make you vulnerable to be taken down.
♪♪
>> Joe: Good combination there and Tyron immediately closes the distance.
He's controlling the clinch here, excellent head position,
nice knee to the body there by Tyron Woodley.
Wonderboy spun him around here.
Let's see if he can break free though,
and Tyron spins him right back.
>> Stand him up with that clinch, Ty.
>> Joe: Nice knee to the body there by Wonderboy.
And he separated.
>> Joe: He's such an odd striker to face off against.
Oh! Spinning back kick.
Good kick!
Woodley shook his head, but--
>> Mike: Which means it hurt.
>> Joe: Almost always.
>> Mike: See if he spins again.
>> Joe: He shook his head again.
>> Now go to work!
>> Mike: Big shot with the left.
>> Joe: He got tagged.
>> Mike: Absolutely.
>> Go forward!
>> Joe: Beautiful straight left there by Wonderboy.
And again, the big shot.
>> Give me some more, baby!
>> Joe: Oh! He tagged him with a right!
Another wild exchange.
>> Good job.
>> Joe: He said, "Good job," to him.
He's such a nice guy.
>> You look great, man, you look great.
>> Come, sit down right here. Sit down right here.
Sit down right here.
>> Make sure he's in range.
>> That round was all you.
You hear me.
>> Joe: Wonderboy won that second round.
>> Mike: But Woodley cut him big time.
>> Joe: Right on the nose.
Easily could have broken the nose.
His nose is really bleeding bad,
and we don't know how badly it's damaged,
nor do we know how well he can breathe out of it.
>> Don't let him back in this fight.
You can't give up another round.
You gotta stay focused.
>> Let's go, T-Wood!
Take it home!
>> Mike: The challenger's cut.
That's a huge story in this fight.
>> Joe: It really is.
Very interesting.
>> Mike: Getting set for round number three.
>> Don't let him back in this fight.
Alright, I need you to take this fight from him.
The way you're gonna do that is you gotta move forward.
>> Okay, that round was all you.
You hear me? That was you.
>> Don't think, just do it.
Come on, man, you gotta do it.
>> What I saw in that second round
is Wonderboy starting to find his rhythm,
and Tyron Woodley starting to slow down.
>> Alright, let's go. Round three, fight!
>> Mike: Round three.
>> Yeah, that's it!
That's what we want!
>> Very good.
>> Joe: There's that front leg again.
>> Joe: Oh, he countered with a beautiful right hand.
>> Yeah!
>> Joe: Immediate left hand, and that left hand cracked him.
>> Come on, baby, come on!
>> Come on, T-Wood.
>> Joe: Ooh, one-two. Beautiful one-two.
>> Put it on him, baby!
>> We gotta answer, remember, kiddo?
>> Joe: Tyron's gotta uncork that leg kick.
That's that kick, there it is.
Brutal power in his kicks.
>> Very good low kick.
>> Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
>> Joe: Really attacked him there.
Beautiful precision.
[horn blowing]
[cheering]
>> Mike: Championship rounds.
The champion.
The challenger.
>> Round four, let's go, gentlemen.
>> Let's go, baby!
>> Come on, Stephen!
>> Joe: Big right hand!
>> Let's go, baby!
>> Be first!
Be first!
>> Joe: Oh!
Woodley hurt him!
>> Mike: Oh, big time right hand!
>> Stay on him! Stay on him!
>> Joe: Oh, he hurt him again!
>> Mike: Oh, my goodness!
[bleep]
>> Finish him, Tyron!
[yelling]
>> Joe: Wonderboy's in big trouble here.
He's trying to get back up, but Woodley's tagging him.
>> Get up, baby!
>> Joe: Wonderboy out on his feet!
Oh!
Huge bombs!
>> Mike: And again, now knees!
Tyron Woodley!
Oh.
Big shot.
>> Joe: Woodley's got a choke.
He's got a deep guillotine.
>> Move!
>> Joe: Wonderboy's defending.
>> Mike: Wow.
>> Joe: Unbelievable.
>> Mike: Trying to survive.
>> Joe: He's gotta still be hurt.
>> Drag him down!
>> Stamp down! Stamp down!
>> Tyron, drag him down!
>> Joe: And he drops down for the guillotine.
Full in! >> Mike: Is this it?
>> Joe: Oh, man, that is so tight.
Incredible. How is he surviving here?
This is amazing.
>> Mike: Unbelievable.
>> Joe: This is so tight and so deep.
How is Wonderboy surviving here?
>> Mike: Listen to the crowd!
[cheering]
>> Joe: He's gonna pop his head out.
His head is free.
And now we have no idea how tired Woodley is
from both that barrage and from squeezing.
Wonderboy on top, raining down shots.
What a round.
What a fight.
[horn blowing] Wow.
>> Mike: So you wanna be an Ultimate Fighter.
>> Joe: And he helps him up after that.
Man!
>> Mike: Up next: Fifth and final round.
>> Come on, baby!
That's right, baby!
[bleep] that's right!
That's right, boy!
Alright, he's done.
Look at me!
He's done, do you understand?
>> It's that moment of greatness.
This is it.
Look out, Madison Square Garden, baby, come on.
Find that Sith in you.
>> You got one more.
You understand?
You got one more.
>> You see what happen when you move forward?
You [bleep] dropped that man.
[bleep] go forward, man, alright?
>> Hey.
We got one more.
Hey! Hands up.
Give me what you got!
>> Come on, Stephen!
>> Dig deep, man, dig deep.
>> Focus, Tyron!
Let's go, Tyron!
>> Mike: Five minutes remain.
>> What a [bleep] fight.
>> I know, right.
>> Well, it is for a world title, right.
>> Joe: This may very well be who has more in the tank
in this fifth and final round.
>> All you got!
>> Joe: Jumping round kick.
Good combination by Thompson.
High kick.
Whoa. Woodley again shakes his head.
>> Only one round in your life, kid.
>> Joe: There's that jab.
>> Mike: He's got Woodley in neutral right now.
>> Break him!
>> Come on, Tyron!
Forward!
>> Joe: Oh! Big right hand there by Wonderboy.
>> Follow it up!
>> Joe: One-two by Wonderboy.
Very, very little action from Tyron Woodley
in this fifth and final round,
and a very close fight.
He's gotta make something happen here.
Nice leg kick.
>> No way, baby, don't think... do.
>> Joe: Oh, he just tagged him with a beautiful right hand.
>> There you go!
>> Don't let up!
>> Don't back up!
Don't give him advance.
>> Joe: Good shot to the body there by Wonderboy.
It's all Wonderboy in this fifth and final round.
Tyron is just having a hard time finding the mark.
Wonderboy pops a jab in his face.
>> Move, move, move!
>> Joe: Tyron really making that rush,
trying to get that connection on him.
Beautiful, one, two, three.
Dominant round for the challenger.
>> Throw, baby!
>> Joe: Beautiful left hand.
>> You need to win big, baby!
>> Joe: Oh, back with a right.
>> Yeah!
>> Joe: Staggered him with a right hand.
[horn blowing]
>> Mike: They go the distance.
>> Joe: Wow.
Really interesting fight.
The champion clearly had the bigger moments,
but there was a lot of volume by Wonderboy Thompson.
>> Mike: Will Woodley defend, or will we have a new
UFC Welterweight Champion?
Regardless of the outcome,
wouldn't mind seeing this one again.
Time for our official decision.
Here is Bruce Buffer.
>> Ladies and gentlemen, Derek Cleary scores it 47-47.
Chuck Crosby has it 47-47.
And Glen Trowbridge scores the contest: 48-47
for the winner by split decision:
Tyron "The Chosen One" Woodley!
[cheering]
>> Joe: I'm here with the champion, and still champion,
Tyron Woodley.
Did you feel that you had done enough to win the decision.
>> I did, but I did wanna finish with a flurry.
He caught me with some good straight punches.
I wasn't able to get those combinations off.
He's a great gauger of space.
>> Interesting, Bruce Buffer
asked by the Commission
to go back out of the octagon.
Double check the scorecards.
Tough one to judge.
>> Bruce: I go by what the Commission told me.
They told me it was a split decision.
>> Come on, let's go!
>> Bruce: Okay, I'm going!
>> Mike: Alright, here's Buff.
>> No, no, no, no, no.
It's fine. It's fine. It's fine.
>> Ladies and gentlemen, we have a correction.
This contest has been judged a majority draw!
>> Joe: It's the exact same score.
You still retain your title, obviously.
It was an awesome fight.
Thank you very much.
Tyron Woodley, ladies and gentlemen!
[cheering]
Alright, Stephen Thompson,
did you feel like you had done enough to win?
>> It is what it is, baby.
We will do it again!
I don't care.
We will do it again, let's go!
>> Joe: Stephen Thompson, ladies and gentlemen!
>> Mike: So many epic fights inside this building, Joe.
And you can add this one to it.
They're gonna talk about Woodley and Thompson
for a long, long time.
>> Megan Olivi: Backstage with Tyron Woodley, who keeps this belt.
And Tyron, obviously, you aren't thrilled with the result.
I can just see you, the emotion on your face right now.
What's really going through your mind?
>> I was a few seconds away from finishing the fight,
a few seconds, maybe one or two rounds,
maybe unanimous decision.
I thought I had a great fight.
I thought I pushed hard.
He's a hard guy to gauge distance on.
I hit him. I dropped him.
I saw him flash.
And then from that point, he did a good job of regaining.
>> How Wonderboy recovered in the fourth round is beyond me.
>> Tyron's strategy was a little confusing,
because they always say you gotta crowd a kicker.
And to be honest, it was Wonderboy
that was crowding Tyron.
>> In hindsight, you know, I could've came out here,
lost my belt today. I didn't.
So, I'm gonna take this and I'm gonna move forward.
>> Reporter: Question for Steve.
Phenomenal performance tonight.
So close.
Did you think you won?
>> You know what, I thought I pulled it out in the last round
just by outpointing.
I know he definitely took the first round.
Busted me up with a few elbows, a few good shots.
He likes to explode in and throw that big right hand.
I was a little hesitant during this fight
and I shouldn't have done that, man.
Should've gone out there and let it all out.
>> Reporter: You had a hard time tagging him at some points.
What particular ways did you adjust,
especially in round four?
>> Who's ever had a good time hitting Wonderboy?
Who's ever hit him like I did
and almost finish him in that manner?
>> Joe: Woodley hurt him!
>> Mike: Oh, my goodness!
>> Stephen: It was a draw.
It's not a win, obviously.
So, it's definitely disappointing.
So let's break that tie.
Definitely wanna do that again.

UFC Fight Flashback: Woodley vs Thompson 1

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