Tyron Woodley Explains Why UFC 228 Fight Against Darren Till Is Personal
Tyron Woodley says his UFC 228 fight against Darren Till is personal.
The welterweight kingpin is set to make his fourth title defense this weekend (Sat. September 8, 2018) on pay-per-view (PPV) against the Englishman.
Woodley won the 170-pound championship from Robbie Lawler back in 2016 by way of hellacious first-round knockout. He subsequently retained the strap in back-to-back fights with Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. In summer of last year, Woodley retained yet again in a unanimous decision victory over Demian Maia. Following that fight, Woodley required surgery that resulted in a 14-month layoff.
Now, Woodley is gearing up to attempt a fourth title defense against “The Gorilla.” One thing irking Woodley in the lead-up to the fight, however, is how many people are picking Till to defeat him.
“T-Wood” told MMA Fighting recently that it’s good to finally be back, but things are personal for his fight against Till:
“It feels great to be back. It feels great to have an opponent that really thinks he wants some, to go out there and train and just have that mindset — this is personal,” Woodley said.
“I’m going to go out there and I’m going to send a message once and for all, and just go out there and do what I do best.”
The 36-year-old has had a long reign as welterweight champion and is adamant that he believes he’s the greatest the weight class has ever seen. With that being said, nearly all major sports betting websites list Till as the favorite this weekend.
It’s for this reason alone that Woodley is heading into Dallas with something to prove:
“The narrative consistently stays the same, 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,” Woodley said.
“It’s about to be intercepted — the storyline and what everybody thinks is going to happen is about to change once again. It’s always the case, and that’s why it’s personal.”
