Why Tyron Woodley should fight Demian Maia, not GSP
Tyron Woodley needs to put up or shut up.
Over the 10 months that have passed since he decimated Robbie Lawler to win the UFC welterweight title, "The Chosen One" has twice defended it against then-top contender Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, but has made no effort to hide his preference for a "moneyweight fight" opposite the likes of former divisional champ Georges St-Pierre, proven draw Nick Diaz, or even reigning middleweight king Michael Bisping.
All this while Demian Maia patiently awaits the title shot he earned by knocking off seven consecutive quality opponents.
Woodley has cited Maia's purported inability to "push the needle" as the reason behind his reluctance over facing him, and maintained a win over GSP and/or Diaz would make him the greatest welterweight of all time. However, a glance at St-Pierre's record betrays the gargantuan fallacy in his projections and, if anything, validates the jiu-jitsu master's case as the rightful challenger-in-waiting.
Related: Woodley still eyeing date with GSP: Maia 'doesn't really interest me'
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Over a reign comprised of nine successful title defenses, GSP took on several contenders who could not be less synonymous with "pay-per-view draw" - from Jon Fitch to Dan Hardy to MMA's most notorious cooler, Jake Shields - and yet, he remains one of the most consistent pay-per-view draws in UFC history. He needn't handpick his opponents or engage in pre-fight shows of gamesmanship to coax butts into their seats.
Only after he'd shattered nearly every UFC welterweight record and taken over three years off did St-Pierre begin calling his own shots. Meanwhile, Woodley is chasing seven-figure paydays - after edging Thompson in a universally panned affair, no less - with Lawler's fingerprints still smudging the gold currently sitting in his trophy case.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
To make matters worse, the 35-year-old Woodley told Ariel Helwani Monday on "The MMA Hour" he believes his brand is far more developed than Maia's, when a quick Twitter search reveals it's the champ that needs to step his game up. As it turns out, the 39-year-old Maia boasts over 500,000 followers to Woodley's comparatively paltry 138,000.
I'll take "Delusions of Grandeur" for $2,000, Alex.
As archaic as this school of thought may be, champions earn their clout not by making it to the top, but by staying there with the world's best nipping at their heels - a bill that Maia fits far better than St-Pierre or Diaz at this juncture. What Woodley's false sense of entitlement and misinterpretation of GSP's legacy have kept him from understanding is this: if going down as the greatest ever is indeed what he's after, then a victory over the best one-trick pony in the game and winner of seven straight easily trumps beating a long-inactive former champ with over 40 rounds of mileage or a fighter who hasn't had his hand raised since late 2011.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
To put Woodley's monetary demands into perspective, feel free to compare his body of work to a pair of UFC fighters who've actually deposited a seven-figure check. Before taking home $3 million for his August rematch with Nate Diaz, Conor McGregor dispatched longtime featherweight contenders Chad Mendes and Dustin Poirier, interim champ Max Holloway, and needed just 13 seconds to put Jose Aldo - arguably the greatest 145-pounder of all time - in a temporary coma.
Ronda Rousey may have been paid as much for a lifeless showing against Amanda Nunes in December, but she earned her cushy seat at the negotiating table by bulldozing her way through her first 12 opponents and defending the UFC women's bantamweight strap a record six times, with four of those wins clocking in at a combined two minutes and 10 seconds.
If he wants to pocket that kind of cabbage, the welterweight champ will first have to prove his drubbing of Lawler was no fluke, and what better way to wash off the stink of the "Wonderboy" rematch than sending his most favorable stylistic matchup in Maia back to Square 1?
Make no mistake, Woodley has all the makings of a superstar, but his road to seven figures goes through Maia, not GSP, and judging by his newly adopted training regimen, he may have finally understood as much.