UFC 209 Preview, Fight Card, Latest News: Woodley vs. Thompson Rematch Headlines UFC 209
When Stephen Thompson and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion Tyron Woodley first met at UFC 205, the fight ended in a draw. Woodley left with his title intact, but nobody was happy with the result. Both fighters thought they did enough to win the fight. However, the judges thought otherwise.
Mixed martial arts (MMA) fans weren't happy about the decision either and many spent the past few months arguing about who should have won. Well, Woodley and Thompson will get the chance to settle the score once and for all when they meet again for a grudge match at UFC 209.
During the UFC 209 open workout media scrum, Woodley said Thompson was lucky to get another shot at the title right away. "A different scoring card, different judges, he would have lost the fight, and he would have had to work two or three more fights to get back in here," he stated, according to MMAJunkie.
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Well, that may be true. But Thompson would probably argue that he would have won if different judges were scoring the first fight. Anyway, Thompson has had a good training camp and he should be ready for Woodley this Saturday.
Meanwhile, one of the most anticipated lightweight matches will take place at the same event when Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson fight for the interim lightweight strap. Lightweight champion Conor McGregor may get all the spotlight, but MMA fans know that Nurmagomedov and Ferguson are the real deal.
With a perfect 24–0 record, Nurmagomedov is simply a beast and his grappling skills are second to none. On the other hand, Ferguson is no slouch either. He's currently on a nine-fight winning streak and he's coming off a dominating win over former lightweight kingpin Rafael dos Anjos.
The two would rather fight for the actual lightweight belt, but they will have to settle for the interim title at UFC 209.
Meanwhile, the rest of the main card includes a middleweight bout between former light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans and Dan Kelly, a heavyweight match between two heavy hitters in Alistair Overeem and Mark Hunt, and a lightweight fight between Lando Vannata and David Teymur.
UFC 209 will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, March 4, at 10 p.m. ET. Fans can also watch it live on pay-per-view.
