Tyron Woodley recently addressed allegations from a man claiming to be his cousin, who accused him of deliberately throwing his fight against Jake Paul. 'The Chosen One' has been away from the MMA scene since his first-round submission defeat to Vicente Luque at UFC 260 back in 2021.
Following his exit from the UFC, Woodley landed a high-profile boxing match against Jake Paul later that same year. In their first encounter, the former UFC welterweight champion came up short, losing via a contentious split decision. The close nature of their initial bout set the stage for a rematch later that year, but this time, the MMA veteran was knocked out in the sixth round.
YouTuber Wade Plemons recently dropped a video asking fans for their thoughts on the highly anticipated heavyweight showdown between Paul and the legendary Mike Tyson. In the video, an individual named Julian Woodley made bold claims, accusing 'The Problem Child' of only fighting in rigged bouts.
The individual also claimed to be Woodley’s cousin, asserting with confidence that 'The Chosen One' intentionally took a fall in his rematch against Paul. However, Woodley took to X to respond to Julian's comments and outright dismissed his claims of any family connection:
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"N*gga wish he was my kinfolk."
Check out Tyron Woodley's post below:
When Tyron Woodley backed Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson despite age gap backlash
Jake Paul is set to face off against Mike Tyson in an eight-round bout on Nov. 15 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. However, since the fight was first announced, it has sparked significant backlash within the combat sports community, largely due to the substantial 31-year age gap between the two fighters.
'Iron Mike' last competed in a professional fight in June 2005, when he retired on his stool against Kevin McBride. However, Tyron Woodley is confident that Tyson's vast experience and years of training are more than enough to overcome the much less seasoned 'The Problem Child'.
During an appearance on The Fighter vs. The Writer podcast (via MMA Fighting) this past July, 'The Chosen One' brushed off concerns about the age gap between Paul and Tyson. Woodley expressed that if the former undisputed heavyweight champion manages to rediscover his old form and unleash his signature power punches, it could spell a difficult night for Paul:
"If [Tyson] has a flashback of a moment of a past fight, and he does that sh*t to Jake, it’s a wrap. So that’s the fight. The age is the only reason why Paul even has a chance. That’s why it’s kind of an even fight."