For about a week now, reports have swirled that discussions have begun in regards to a potential welterweight title fight at UFC 219 on Dec. 30 between champion Tyron Woodley and Nate Diaz.
Woodley even responded to these reports by stating if Diaz wants to go, he’d be willing to fight. Woodley has continously called on for the fight to happen, going as far as to tell TMZ that he has signed the contract and is waiting to hear back from the younger Diaz brother.
But Woodley’s verbal taunting did not stop with the TMZ video, which you can watch in the video player above.
During the UFC Sydney weigh-in show, Woodley questioned if Diaz, who had a feud for the ages with Conor McGregor last year, was scared to fight him.
“I’m here. All I need is the paperwork sent — UFC 219, Dec. 30 needs a headliner. It’s been offered to me, it’s been offered to Nate Diaz. Unfortunately, one half has not accepted. So you guys, people listening and watching, you guys need to get the Twitter fingers and ask your man that said ‘Don’t be scared,’ why is he scared?”
But Woodley’s comments weren’t all belligerent, as he did also give some praise to both Nate Diaz and his older brother, Nick. At the same time, Woodley defended the potential match-up against critics, who point out Diaz hasn’t fought since the rematch with McGregor at UFC 202. Woodley says that sometimes it’s not a matter of rankings.
“I’m a huge fan of the Diaz boys. I’m a huge fan of what they’ve done for our sport. I feel like it’s not about the rankings anymore. Sometimes the rankings are a little shaky. When you think about who’s put in the most work, the most time, is he not deserving of the world title based upon what he did? Fighting Conor McGregor; even before, just fighting in these wars.”
UFC 219 takes place on Dec. 30 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Currently expected to headline is a Women’s Featherweight Title bout between champion Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm.