Stephen Thompson: Tyron Woodley Was His Best At UFC 205 – I Wasn’t

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson will run it back in the main event of UFC 209 from Las Vegas this March, after their initial contest in the co-main event of last year’s UFC 205 ended in a majority draw.

After five rounds of great mixed martial arts (MMA) competition, there was no definitive winner in the eyes of the judges after the 25-minute title bout, and the call for an immediate rematch begun before either man could exit the Octagon. Woodley nearly finished the bout in the fourth round with a deep guillotine choke, but somehow ‘Wonderboy’ miraculously survived and ended the round on top.

Thompson recently joined the UFC Unfiltered podcast with Matt Sera and Jim Norton (via MMA Mania) to discuss the upcoming rematch, stating that while Woodley was at his best that night in New York, he wasn’t and failed to ‘pull the trigger’ during the 170-pound title fight:

“I felt like I could’ve gone another three rounds after that,” said Thompson. “I felt fine, I felt great. I just didn’t put out enough, just didn’t do it. I didn’t pull the trigger and I’ve been beating myself up about it ever since.”

Knowing he wasn’t at his best the first time around and believing ‘The Chosen One’ gave it everything he had, Thompson has a new sense of confidence heading into his rematch with Woodley in Vegas:

“It fuels me to know that I wasn’t at my best, while Tyron was at his best, he hit me with his best shots, had a deep guillotine choke on me and still couldn’t finish me,” said “Wonderboy.”

“So that gives me the fuel and fire to get out there and do it again. To train as hard as I can knowing that,” he said.

Woodley and Thompson will meet in the main event of UFC 209 live on pay-per-view (PPV) for the UFC welterweight title, from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, March 4, 2017.