While there may have been some confusion regarding the official ruling from the judges in the co-main event at Saturday night’s UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor mega-event at Madison Square Garden, no matter what wording wa…
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While there may have been some confusion regarding the official ruling from the judges in the co-main event at Saturday night’s UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor mega-event at Madison Square Garden, no matter what wording was chosen, “The Chosen One” was the rightful owner of the UFC Welterweight Championship belt at the end of the evening.
In the second-to-last fight of what is going to be the new all-time record holder, by far, in virtually every business-related category out there for some time to come, “The Chosen One” Tyron Woodley managed to keep his championship status in tact by doing enough in nearly finishing opponent Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson on a few occasions in the fourth round to secure a Majority Draw ruling.
Featured above are full fight video highlights of the Woodley-Thompson co-main event from UFC 205, the promotion’s first-ever event held in the state of New York, which includes Woodley’s vicious knockdown of “Wonderboy” (with awesome slow-motion replays included) and near fight-finishing guillotine choke.
For complete UFC 205 results from Madison Square Garden, click here.
As mixed martial arts fans finish digesting the elation or heartbreak of Conor McGregor’s history-making lightweight title win over Eddie Alvarez in the main event of last night’s UFC 205, the discussion has now shifted to just whom the dual champ “Notorious” will face in his next bout. An obvious contender is top-ranked lightweight Khabib
As mixed martial arts fans finish digesting the elation or heartbreak of Conor McGregor’s history-making lightweight title win over Eddie Alvarez in the main event of last night’s UFC 205, the discussion has now shifted to just whom the dual champ “Notorious” will face in his next bout.
An obvious contender is top-ranked lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov, the smothering Dagestani wrestler who made his brutally clinical submission win over previously surging Michael Johnson look like just another day at the office, and after almost three years since his last fight with a top opponent, no less. Tony Ferguson will undoubtedly have a strong opinion against that, and obviously Jose Aldo, Max Holloway, and every other top featherweight is holding out hope McGregor will somehow return to 145 pounds.
That doesn’t seem too likely at this point.
McGregor also cautioned that after UFC 205 supposedly broke almost every major UFC record in terms of financial success for a single card, he would have to re-assess his place in the company that he believes depends on him to succeed, and the only way to do that is to reach some sort of partnership where he has a stake alongside the new owners who bought the company for a record $4.2 billion in July.
The polarizing star also stated he was going to take some time off as he’s going to be a father next year, sour news to the ears of every single fighter in the talented divisions he now rules concurrently. When he does return eventually, he may be fighting for an unprecedented third UFC title. He mixed it up with UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley throughout the week leading up to UFC 205, and now a match-up between the two is certainly possible.
Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger for USA TODAY Sports
“The Chosen One” is believed to be headed for a rematch with Stephen Thompson after his hotly-debated majority draw in the UFC 205 co-main event, but after looking for a money fight with Georges St-Pierre or Nick Diaz after he won the belt from Robbie Lawler at UFC 201, Woodley isn’t about to let another “red panty night” slip through his grasp.
Goaded by a ‘fan’ online who mocked Woodley’s status as champ before asking him to ‘help’ McGregor win a third belt, the bulldozing titleholder simply said he was down:
Woodley has often stated a bout with McGregor would be an easy task, as his punching power is a different animal compared to the 145 and 155-pound fighters “Notorious” is used to facing. But fighters like Alvarez and Aldo have said McGregor had not been tested right before he knocked them out with shocking ease.
There’s a good amount of backstory and animosity between McGregor and Woodley, and that only grew to heightened proportions when the UFC awkwardly gave McGregor Woodley’s belt on short notice when he demanded to have a second title to commemorate his accomplishments during his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan.
He teased a title bout against Lawler when he held the belt, and another historic title fight – this time against Woodley – could be on the docket if and when “The Notorious” returns from his break with an agreeable deal inked with the new owners.
Do you believe McGregor would have a strong chance at a third UFC belt?
UFC 205 is in the books, and now it’s time for Reebok to pay the fighters their sponsorship money. The event was headlined by a UFC Lightweight Title bout between Eddie Alvarez ($40,000) and Conor McGregor ($40,000). A UFC Welterweight Title bout between current champion Tyron Woodley ($40,000) and Stephen Thompson ($30,000) was the co-main
UFC 205 is in the books, and now it’s time for Reebok to pay the fighters their sponsorship money.
The event was headlined by a UFC Lightweight Title bout between Eddie Alvarez ($40,000) and Conor McGregor ($40,000). A UFC Welterweight Title bout between current champion Tyron Woodley ($40,000) and Stephen Thompson ($30,000) was the co-main event. Rounding out the main card was Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($40,000) vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz ($30,000) for the Women’s Strawweight title, Yoel Romero ($5,000) vs. Chris Weidman ($10,000) in a middleweight bout and Raquel Pennington ($5,000) vs. Miesha Tate ($10,000) in a women’s bantamweight bout.
The full payouts include:
Conor McGregor: $40,000 def. Eddie Alvarez: $40,000
Tyron Woodley: $40,000 vs. Stephen Thompson: $30,000
UFC 205 takes place on Saturday, November 12, 2016 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. This event was the first UFC event hosted in New York City and the first UFC event hosted in the State of New York since 1995. The main card aired on PPV at 10 p.m. ET and the prelims aired on FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET and UFC Fight Pass at 7 p.m. ET.
During the madness of UFC 205 in New York last night, fans were treated to a thrilling welterweight title clash. Filling the co-main event slot of the evening, Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson battled in a ‘fight of the night’ winning war. Their five round classic was fraught with excitement, particularly in round four. Dropping
During the madness of UFC 205 in New York last night, fans were treated to a thrilling welterweight title clash. Filling the co-main event slot of the evening, Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson battled in a ‘fight of the night’ winning war. Their five round classic was fraught with excitement, particularly in round four. Dropping Thompson twice with huge punches that would’ve KO’d anyone else, ‘The Chosen One’ found out just how durable ‘Wonderboy’ is. Thompson managed to resist a seemingly tight choke and fought back to arguably win round five.
The contest was close, and many had the bout scored perfectly even after the final stanza. Although Thompson had clearly won three rounds to two, Woodley had scored two knockdowns in round four. Although Bruce Buffer pulled a Steve Harvey and announced the fight a split decision for ‘T-Wood,’ it was in fact a majority draw. Keeping his belt in any instance, Woodley moves on with his title intact.
Adam Hunger for USA TODAY Sports
What’s Next?
Moving forward, there’s a clear argument for these men mixing it up again. Both displayed the ability to beat the other at UFC 205. ‘Wonderboy’ had that crisp and accurate striking, while ‘The Chosen One’ showed flashes of his raw knockout power and explosiveness. Thankfully UFC president Dana White sees it the same way, and tells FOX Sportsthat a rematch between the two will be next:
“You rematch it. It was a draw,” White said at the UFC 205 post-fight press conference. “The fight was ridiculous. It was the ‘Fight of the Night.’ Do it again. That one makes sense. I think it makes sense,”
Move over Demian Maia.
Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger for USA TODAY Sports
Woodley vs. Wonderboy 2
With the promotion putting a lot of eggs in one basket at UFC 205, things have actually turned out pretty promising. We already have the exciting prospect of Woodley vs. Thompson 2, Conor McGregor now holds two belts, Yoel Romero became the clear number one contender at middleweight, and Khabib Nurmagomedov could leapfrog Tony Ferguson after his dominant win.
Let’s not forget that we’ve been here before.
A wild, hotly contested world title fight provides 25 minutes of the purest athletic unruliness one could imagine—right down to one guy surviving multiple knockdowns on his way to taking b…
Let’s not forget that we’ve been here before.
A wild, hotly contested world title fight provides 25 minutes of the purest athletic unruliness one could imagine—right down to one guy surviving multiple knockdowns on his way to taking back the fight—and ends in a draw.
That narrative unfolded at UFC 125 in January 2011 when Frankie Edgar provided a legacy-cementing performance against Gray Maynard, surviving one of the worst beatings ever dished out in a round of MMA before coming back to earn a draw over the subsequent four rounds and hold onto his title.
It led to an immediate rematch with Maynard at UFC 136, one developed out of the sheer distaste for a lack of closure after he so nearly beat Edgar the first time. It left Anthony Pettis, who had earned a crack at UFC gold by being the last man to hold the WEC lightweight title, on the outside looking in, but it was the right thing to do at the time, and the UFC did it.
At UFC 205 on Saturday, the challenger Stephen Thompson met welterweight champion TyronWoodley to similarly wild, hotly contested effect. Thompson won more rounds, but Woodley won his more convincingly—particularly the fourth, which saw him blast Thompson flat on two occasions and spend severalminutes throttling him with a guillotine choke before the South Carolina native wormed out and finished up throwing punches from inside Woodley’s guard.
The result: Pucker up and kiss your sister, everyone. We have a majority draw.
Yet, much as with the Edgar-Maynard contest at UFC 125, there was an element of satisfaction to the outcome (though Woodley would likely disagree considering they announced to him, and the world, he had won a split decision after a scorecard mix-up). The bout was as close as any title fight in recent memory; it was an unfurling of high-level martial arts between a powerful wrestler and a karate whiz that amounted to a chess game of the highest order and with the highest stakes.
For that reason, much as with the Edgar-Maynard contest at UFC 125, the promotion has to do it again.
The parallels are too clear for the UFC to diverge from past practice in this instance, right down to another obvious top contender waiting in line. Demian Maia has seemingly beaten everyone on the planet who can make 170 pounds over the past few years, but he’s still behind Thompson in the pecking order because Wonderboy never lost at UFC 205.
It also doesn’t hurt that the fight was so entertaining. Even taking away the incredible fourth round, it was the ultimate display of what experts look like when they’re plying their trade. It was akin to watching a battle of the bands between Elvis and The Beatles or watching Monet and Picasso try to outpaint each other, only with (presumably) far more kicking and punching.
The tilt won Fight of the Night on the biggest card in the history of the UFC, in front of one of the hottest crowds in the history of the UFC, on a night when there wasn’t a single dull fight. It had people roaring and screaming from the outset. It cemented Woodley as a legitimate champion at a time when many have been anxious to dismiss him, and it well may have made Wonderboy’s heart the stuff of legend.
Save for the size of the stage on which it happened, that sounds an awful lot like a night in Las Vegas nearly six years ago when Edgar and Maynard beat each other senseless and got no satisfaction for it.
We’ve been here before, folks.
It’s time to do right by Wonderboy and run it back.
With tonight’s (Sat., November 12, 2016) historic UFC 205 in the record books from Madison Square Garden in New York City, the collective MMA world can now bask in the glory of a so-called ‘super card’ that actually delivered to the point of legitimately being in the conversation for the best mixed martial arts event
With tonight’s (Sat., November 12, 2016) historic UFC 205 in the record books from Madison Square Garden in New York City, the collective MMA world can now bask in the glory of a so-called ‘super card’ that actually delivered to the point of legitimately being in the conversation for the best mixed martial arts event of all time.
The card featured UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor making history by stopping lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez to become the first concurrent two-weight champion in UFC history in the main event, yet it also featured so, so much more. New York City’s first major MMA event also showcased the absolutely insane back-and-forth war between Tyron Woodley Stephen Thompson in the co-main event in addition to Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s entertaining women’s strawweight title bout versus a very game Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
The main card had more drama still, with Yoel Romero knocking out former champ Chris Weidman with a picturesque flying knee and Miesha Tate’s shocking retirement after her decision loss to Raquel Pennington. Finally, the prelims were home to even more exciting fights, as Frankie Edgar once again showed his legendary heart by surviving a huge head kick from Jeremy Stephens to outlast the power-hitting “Lil’ Heathen,” while top lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov picked up his first win over a top competitor in two-and-a-half years when he submitted Michael Johnson after a dominant wrestling display.
All in all, it was a legendary event that made a strong case for the best MMA event ever. Do you think it earned that lofty title?
Let’s not forget that we’