Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley isn’t done with mixed martial arts.
I spoke with the 42-year-old recently, and he told me he is returning to the sport but hasn’t confirmed the promotion. In our exclusive interview, Woodley offered as many details as he could.
“I’m working on a comeback, not that I ever left,” Woodley said.
Woodley hasn’t fought in mixed martial arts since March 2021, when he lost to Vicente Luque via submission in the first round. Woodley then lost back-to-back boxing matches to Jake Paul.
The second loss came devastatingly in one of the top candidates for KO of the year in 2021.
“I needed some time to be normal,” Woodley said. “In 2022 [actually 2021], after I fought those two fights against Jake, I just really took the next years to travel and go to concerts.”
Woodley mentioned he started a promotional business called TRIP, which stands for The Realest International Promotions, though he still entertained the idea of fighting with other big names.
“In 2023, there was a lot of cap,” Woodley said. “A lot of people say they wanted to fight; Floyd said he wanted to fight. Manny said he wanted to fight. KSI wanted to fight. One was down to a contract, but none of them went through.”
The fight with KSI would have been exciting, and it would have allowed Woodley to redeem himself in the world of influencer boxing while securing another bag in the process. As it is, it seems Woodley is ready to climb back into the cage where he has the most experience as a professional combat sports athlete.
“Now that I have everything in position so I can focus on getting this body back into shape and getting ready to do more destruction,” Woodley said.
While Woodley confirmed his comeback would be in the sport of MMA, Woodley also was sure to share that he wasn’t done with boxing. I also asked if the comeback would be in the UFC, but Woodley said he couldn’t “say anything yet.”
You can see the entire portion of our interview in the clip below.
If Woodley returns to MMA, there is a chance he could find a spot with the UFC. Jorge Masvidal is another big name who has recently expressed an interest to fight in the UFC again.
Masvidal wanted to fight Nate Diaz, Conor McGregor, or Michael Chandler, but a fight with Woodley wouldn’t be the worst concept.Woodley’s relationship with the UFC has been rocky at times, so it is unclear if him and Dana White could come to an agreement on a return to the Octagon.
If Woodley lands with PFL/Bellator, seeing him face someone like Yoel Romero wouldn’t surprise me.
We’ll likely find out soon enough.
