Tyron Woodley has just one piece of advice for Conor McGregor: Stay away from the welterweight division.
Speaking with Chris Taylor of BJPenn.com, the champion of the UFC’s 170-pound division made no effort to get a fight with the sport’s top draw and dismissed McGregor‘s chances of making any kind of run in the division.
“Well first off I think Conor is a smart individual and he knows that fighting me is not going to be good for his health,” he said. “I just do not really see him wanting that fight. I see him relinquishing his 145-pound belt and then maybe defending his title a few times at lightweight.”
He added later, “So he is a smart business guy and so I do not think he is going to want to come up and fight a guy who is going to outsize him. Being 170 and fighting 170 is two different things. I walk around at 200.”
Woodley isn’t wrong.
While McGregor fans have largely seen him walk the walk when it comes to his talk, the featherweight champ (and current lightweight top contender) can’t defy nature.
Despite most recently competing at 170 pounds opposite Nate Diaz at UFC 202, the difference in size between McGregor and legitimate welterweights is profound. Examples of this aren’t hard to find, either, as McGregor can regularly be spotted alongside training partners who compete at 170 pounds, such as former UFC welterweight Cathal Pendred:
At one time, there was chatter regarding McGregor jumping to 170 pounds for a shot at the title, with McGregor taking swipes at then-champion Robbie Lawler. His loss to Diaz—who normally competes at 155 pounds—at UFC 196, however, seems to have cooled off that discussion.
Of course, Woodley wouldn’t actually turn down a fight with McGregor if an offer came his way.
“I do not think Conor McGregor has any interest in coming for the welterweight strap,” he said. “But if we both get through [our] fights with victories and he wants to fight me then by all means. Sign me up now. I would actually feel bad about beating Conor McGregor.”
Both men are set to compete on Nov. 12 at UFC 205. McGregor will look to become the first two-division UFC champion at the expense of Eddie Alvarez, while Woodley will defend the welterweight strap from Stephen Thompson. It will be interesting to see if they start mentioning each other more as the event approaches.
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