Tyron Woodley is set for a huge welterweight bout at UFC 260

Tyron Woodley is set to return to the UFC octagon against promising young contender Vicente Luque at the UFC 260 PPV event in March. According to MMA Fighting, many sources have confirmed that the bout agreement is already in place and Vicente Luques’s corner has already signed the contract. Brett Okamoto of ESPN on Twitter initially reported the news.

Considered to be one of the greatest welterweight fighters in UFC history, former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley has had a rough slide in the last two years. The Chosen One enters the octagon following a three-fight losing skid against the division’s top three fighters.

No. 9 ranked Vicente Luque is one of the promising up-and-comers in the welterweight division and holds a 12-3 record in the UFC so far. Luque is known for his lethal striking and fan-friendly fighting style. Following a unanimous decision loss to Stephen Thompson, Luque has scored stoppage wins over his last two opponents Niko Price and Randy Brown, finishing all but two of his opponents in the UFC.

In the classic veteran versus prospect matchup, Tyron Woodley and Vicente Luque will attempt to make a case for a top-three opponent following a win at UFC 260.

Tyron Woodley’s recent decline

In a seven-fight unbeaten run that lasted from 2014 to 2019, Tyron Woodley won the welterweight title by knocking Robbie Lawler out in the first round and defended it four times against Stephen Thompson (twice), Demian Maia and Darren Till before losing to Kamaru Usman. Woodley fought Gilbert Burns and Colby Covington in 2020 and lost both fights in a lopsided fashion. Tyron Woodley’s recent decline is evident from the fact that he has not been able to win any of the last 14 rounds he has fought inside the UFC octagon.

At 38 years of age, Woodley is one of the more popular and successful fighters at the tail end of their career. While a win over Vicente Luque can make him relevant in the title picture again, a loss will push him further down in the rankings and calls for his retirement will only get louder.

UFC 260 PPV main card will be headlined by a much-anticipated rematch between heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic and Francis NGannou. In the co-headliner, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will attempt to defend his title against a resurgent Brian Ortega coming off a spectacular in over ‘Korean Zombie’ Chan Sung Jung.

Published 03 Feb 2021, 05:45 IST