Tyron Woodley is putting his welterweight championship on the line against an undefeated challenger in the main event of UFC 228, which takes place this Saturday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
Woodley is looking to make his fourth title defense and will take on Darren “The Gorilla” Till, who is coming off of a win over Stephen Thompson at UFC Fight Night 130 in May.
Conservative Approach Hasn’t Brought Respect for Woodley
Woodley (18-3-1) won his title at UFC 201, when he knocked out Robbie Lawler in just over two minutes. Since then, his title defenses have been shaky at best: all three have gone to decision, with the first two against Thompson resulting in a draw and a majority decision victory respectively.
This is the result of a conservative approach in recent fights that has allowed Woodley to hang on to his title but hasn’t earned him a lot of respect – something the champion hopes to change on Saturday.
“The narrative consistently stays the same,” Woodley told the media during open workouts for UFC 228 on Wednesday. “And I think the way you change the narrative is you go out there, and you kick ass, and you take names, and you walk away.”
Till (17-0-1) is getting his first title shot in the UFC after six fights in the company. While most of his fights in the promotion have gone to decision, he certainly has knockout power when he wants to use it. That means the fight could be an exciting one – if the two fighters break out of the cautious approach they’ve both used lately.
Till missed weight badly in his fight against Thompson, which has led to intense speculation over his weight heading into the title fight. On Wednesday, Till told reporters that he weighed 182 lbs that morning, 12 pounds above the 170-pound limit for the championship fight.
However, he also pointed out that he was the same weight on the Wednesday before his fight against Donald Cerrone last year, when he made the cut without issue.
“I’m never gonna say it’s a great cut, it’s always hard,” Till told the media. “Because the fighters do that and I just don’t agree with it. It’s a lie. Weight’s not great. I don’t want to speak to anyone. I just want to get my things done.”
Bookmakers are expecting a competitive fight between the welterweights. According to Bwin, Till is the favorite, with the Englishman being listed at -137 to take his first UFC championship from Woodley (+110).
Shevchenko Expected to Claim Flyweight Title
By contrast, there’s a clear favorite in the co-main event, and it isn’t the current champion. UFC women’s flyweight title holder Nicco Montano (4-2) is defending her belt against challenger Valentina Shevchenko (15-3), and few are predicting that Montano will leave the octagon as a winner.
Montano won the championship by winning a title tournament on The Ultimate Fighter, a stunning result for a woman who came into the competition as the No. 14 seed. Still, she has been dismissed by many fans who think she is an undeserving champion.
That will change if she somehow pulls off an upset over Shevchenko, who has wins against fighters like Holly Holm and Julianna Pena on her resume. Shevchenko (-1667) comes into the bout as an overwhelming favorite, and it’s hard to see Montano (+750) finding a way to seriously challenge the Peruvian.
Other fights on the UFC 228 main card include a clash between women’s strawweight contenders Jessica Andrade (-455) and Karolina Kowalkiewicz (+300), and a featherweight battle between Zabit Magomedsharipov (-1429) and Brandon Davis (+650).