Connor Ruebusch and Patrick Wyman break down the boring, looking into the painfully slow rematch between Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson at UFC 209.
Well, they can’t all be winners. In their first fight there were hints that Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson might not be the kind of rivalry we wanted. They were rarely willing to collaborate in that first bout, and only the concrete threat of Woodley’s power–and Thompson’s ability to withstand it–turned the slow scrap into a nail-biting affair. We wondered last week what adjustments both men would make to seal the deal this time around–as it turns out, they both moved away from the measured action of the first fight and into the measured inaction of this one. Woodley-Thompson I was among the best fights of 2016; Woodley-Thompson II will go down as one of the worst title fights ever (though certainly not the very worst).
We’re breaking it all down on this week’s Heavy Hands, and fortunately talking about happier subjects too. Like David Teymur’s victory over Lando Vannata, both tactical and thrilling. Or “Dadbod” Dan Kelly’s win over Rashad Evans, odd and inspiring. Or how about Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia, two more boxers receiving 2017 as the year of the meaningful matchup.
It was a good weekend for fight fans, and without it Woodley-Thompson II would not be so fun to gripe about. Silver linings, I guess. But hey, we’re not too interested in dwelling on the past, and we also give our thoughts on two of the best fights scheduled for next weekend’s UFC event in Fortaleza, Vitor Belfort vs Kelvin Gastelum, and Edson Barboza vs Beneil Dariush.
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