ARLINGTON, Texas – Tyron Woodley is moving on in his career, with or without a Jake Paul rematch.
The former UFC champion has big plans for the future that don’t involve Paul, he said. Woodley was last seen in action in August when he lost a split decision to the YouTube superstar in an eight-round professional boxing bout.
Paul said he would grant Woodley a rematch if the former UFC welterweight title holder got a tattoo saying, “I love Jake Paul.” Woodley honored his end of the bargain, but Paul never followed up, instead booking a bout against Tommy Fury on Dec. 18.
Woodley is not happy about not getting the rematch, he said, but won’t lose sleep over it.
“Jake Paul is a b*tch,” Woodley told MMA Junkie. “He didn’t want to fight, like, ‘You did it too late.’ No, you just didn’t want to fight, and they gave you a way out, and you took it and ran. It’s like a little kid in a playground, ‘Na, na, na, na, na,’ when they know they didn’t really win.
“Most people that watched the fight felt like I won the fight. I really didn’t walk away a loser in the fight. My ceiling doesn’t look different right now.”
Woodley plans on keeping busy in 2022. Currently a free agent, Woodley intends to mix things up not only with fighters, but also with promotions and fighting styles.
“I’m the only free agent in combat sports,” Woodley said. “Nobody else can say they’re a free agent. I can fight here, I can fight there. I can fight anywhere.
“You’re going to see my fight multiple times, for different promotions – four different styles of fighting. I’m going to be the first one to do it, and then everybody else is going to follow behind like they always do. One of them is going to be MMA. I plan on fighting in MMA in July in a real special fight to me. It’s probably going to be in Las Vegas.”