Tyron Woodley Was Down 8-1 in His Wrestling Return. Then He Scored 13 Straight Factors to Win

Tyron Woodley’s return to aggressive wrestling appeared headed for a fast defeat on the night of August 22 in Cleveland.

The former UFC welterweight champion fell behind Joaquin Buckley 8-1 at Real American Freestyle 12 earlier than rallying to win 14-8. Woodley scored 13 unanswered factors to finish the comeback.

See the Buckley vs Woodley Match – RAF12 | Fox Nation (Starts at 27:11)

Buckley constructed his early benefit with a pair of four-point throws. Woodley entered the second interval seven factors behind and two factors from a technical-fall loss.

Woodley started closing the hole with step-outs earlier than a four-point gut-wrench sequence late within the second interval introduced him inside one level.

A step-out within the last interval tied the match. Woodley then countered Buckley’s try to attain with one other four-point takedown and added two extra factors to complete the 14-8 victory.

“When I got down, I didn’t lose my composure,” Woodley stated in MMA Fighting’s report.

Woodley had not gained a combat-sports contest since September 2018, when he submitted Darren Till at UFC 228 to retain the UFC welterweight championship. He subsequently misplaced 4 consecutive UFC fights earlier than shifting into boxing, the place he misplaced three extra occasions, together with two defeats to Jake Paul and one to Anderson Silva.

The 44-year-old was a two-time NCAA Division I All-American at Missouri earlier than shifting into blended martial arts. He had not competed in wrestling for almost 20 years.

Woodley additionally defined what he was telling himself because the match turned in opposition to Buckley.

“I said, ‘Tyron, you gonna win tonight, you gonna win tonight, you gonna win tonight…’ AND I WON!” he stated, based on MMA Sucka’s report.

Woodley is scheduled to wrestle former UFC champion Khamzat Chimaev on Sept. 5 in Moscow.