| Tyron Woodley | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 17, 1982 Ferguson, Missouri, United States |
| Other names | T-Wood Tabasco |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st) |
| Division | Welterweight |
| Reach | 73.0 in (185 cm) |
| Style | Wrestling |
| Fighting out of | Coconut Creek, Florida |
| Team | American Top Team |
| Rank | NCAA Division I Wrestling |
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 9 |
| Wins | 9 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 5 |
| By decision | 3 |
| Losses | 0 |
| Amateur career | |
| Total | 7 |
| Wins | 7 |
| Losses | 0 |
| Other information | |
| University | University of Missouri |
| Notable school(s) | McCluer High School |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Tyron Woodley (born April 17, 1982) is an American former amateur wrestler for the University of Missouri and is now a professional mixed martial artist. He is currently signed to a deal with Strikeforce.
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Tyron Woodley was born and raised in Ferguson, Missouri, an area a few miles from St. Louis, Missouri. He was born eleventh of the thirteen Woodley children to Sylvester and Deborah Woodley. He was raised by his mother after his father left early in his life. In high school he was on the honor roll every term, received All-Conference honors in football, was a two-time state finalist in wrestling finishing 48-0 and winning a state title.[1][2]
After graduating from McCluer High School in 2000, he had offers from Nebraska, Northern Iowa, and Missouri. After going on his recruiting visit to Nebraska, he had verbally committed but later discovered Nebraska's head wrestling coach was forced to resign. While at Missouri he was a teammate of current MMA fighter and 2008 Olympian Ben Askren. He decided he would attend Mizzou and help rebuild the wrestling team.[3] Tyron Woodley graduated from Mizzou in 2005 with a major in Agricultural Economics and is now attending Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. He plans on graduating in 2012 with a degree in Public Administration.[4]
Tyron Woodley got his start after walking into a local MMA gym and asked the owner about participating on the gym's amateur fight card happening in the next month. The owner trained him a little, and put him on the card. The fight lasted 20 seconds with Woodley walking away victorious. He collected a perfect 7-0 record in amateur bouts with all bouts being finished by a KO or submission.
Still an amateur, Woodley attended the open tryouts for the ninth season of The Ultimate Fighter. He was one of the final cuts before the show started.[5]
Woodley fought his first professional fight on February 7, 2009, it was held by Headhunter Productions at the Holiday Inn Select Executive Center in Columbia, Missouri. His opponent was Steve Schnider.[6] The fight streamed live on Purefight.org. Woodley won his second fight by submitting Jeff Carstens.[7]
Woodley made his Strikeforce debut in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. The fight was at the event Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields on June 6, 2009. Tyron won the fight by submission late into round one. After the win, Strikeforce signed Woodley to an exclusive six fight deal and plan on using him on most of the Showtime cards.[8]
Woodley made his second appearance for Strikeforce on the Strikeforce Challengers: Kennedy vs. Cummings card. He defeated Zach Light via submission in the second round.
On the Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears card, Woodley had his third fight for Strikeforce, defeating Rudy Bears via Arm-Triangle submission. The fight was the main event.[9][10] After his win over Bears, Woodley signed on with EA Sports to take part in their up coming MMA based game, EA Sports MMA.[11]
Tyron won a controversial split decision against Nathan Coy at Strikeforce Challengers: Lindland vs. Casey in Portland, Oregon. Many spectators disagreed with the decision, having believed Coy had won the fight.
On October 9, 2010, at Strikeforce: San Jose, Woodley defeated André Galvão via knockout midway in the first round. This was Woodley's debut on the main card of a major Strikeforce event.
Woodley headlined his second Strikeforce Challengers event at Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine, when he fought Tarec Saffiedine on January 7, 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee.[12] Using effective clinch work and take downs, Woodley won the fight via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28). After the win, Woodley claimed to be the number one contender for the welterweight title. Strikeforce then signed an extension to Woodley's contract, giving him four more fights and better pay.[13]
During the Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley event Woodley wore a shirt that had the words, "I Got Next", printed on the front implying he was the next to fight for the welterweight title. At Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson, Tyron replaced Evangelista Santos and fought Paul Daley. Woodley controlled the fight with effective takedowns, and according to Compustrike, out struck Daley en route to a unanimous decision win. With the win, Woodley will likely fight for the vacant Strikeforce welterweight title.[14] “I verged to the left and avoided the iceberg,” Woodley told Showtime Sports shortly after the win. “I knew it was going to be a tough fight.... I knew I had to be slick and get inside of him, he’s strong guy. I couldn’t get frustrated when I didn’t take him down and (I had) to keep going for him. So that’s what I did.”[15]
Woodley is scheduled to fight Canadian prospect Jordan Mein at Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine.[14]
He is married and has a son, Tyron Jr. (TJ). Woodley also volunteers as an assistant wrestling coach for the SIUE Cougars.
He has expressed interest in someday opening up a non-profit facility to expose troubled children to sports and teach them life skills.[16]
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 9 matches | 9 wins | 0 losses |
| By knockout | 1 | 0 |
| By submission | 5 | 0 |
| By decision | 3 | 0 |
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 9-0 | Paul Daley | Decision (unanimous) | Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson | July 30, 2011 | 3 | 5:00 | Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States | |
| Win | 8–0 | Tarec Saffiedine | Decision (unanimous) | Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine | January 7, 2011 | 3 | 5:00 | Nashville, Tennessee, United States | |
| Win | 7–0 | André Galvão | KO (punches) | Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Noons II | October 9, 2010 | 1 | 1:48 | San Jose, California, United States | |
| Win | 6–0 | Nathan Coy | Decision (split) | Strikeforce Challengers: Lindland vs. Casey | May 21, 2010 | 3 | 5:00 | Portland, Oregon, United States | |
| Win | 5–0 | Rudy Bears | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears | November 20, 2009 | 1 | 2:52 | Kansas City, Kansas, United States | |
| Win | 4–0 | Zach Light | Submission (armbar) | Strikeforce Challengers: Kennedy vs. Cummings | September 25, 2009 | 2 | 3:38 | Bixby, Oklahoma, United States | |
| Win | 3–0 | Sal Woods | Submission (brabo choke) | Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields | June 6, 2009 | 1 | 4:20 | St. Louis, Missouri, United States | |
| Win | 2–0 | Jeff Carstens | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Respect Is Earned: Brotherly Love Brawl | April 30, 2009 | 1 | 0:48 | Oaks, Pennsylvania, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Steve Schnider | Submission (punches) | Headhunter Productions: The Patriot Act 1 | February 7, 2009 | 1 | 1:09 | Columbia, Missouri, United States |