Woodley drops Lawler in 1st round to seize UFC welterweight title

Tyron Woodley truly is "The Chosen One."

The 34-year-old put an emphatic end to Robbie Lawler's welterweight reign with a first-round KO in the main event of UFC 201 in Atlanta on Saturday.

After a brief feeling-out process, Woodley pounced and landed a thunderbolt right on Lawler's chin that sent him crashing down against the cage. Referee Dan Miragliotta gave Lawler every chance to recover, but Woodley was relentless in pounding him out to end the fight in just over two minutes.

The new champion joins Nick Diaz as the only two fighters to knock Lawler out in the slugger's 15-year career.

It was the fifth UFC victory by knockout for Woodley, his third straight win, and the fifth win in his past six bouts. This was his second world title fight after a failed bid to become the Strikeforce welterweight champion in 2012.

For Lawler, it was only his second loss in 10 appearances since rejoining the UFC in February 2013. He'd aimed to record his third title defense, but instead ended up being finished for the first time in five years.