UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley never truly believed he was in line to face Georges St-Pierre in his first fight back in nearly four years despite posturing from UFC president Dana White to the contrary.

Following months of delays to get St-Pierre’s fight against middleweight champion Michael Bisping scheduled, White said that he was moving forward with every intention of booking a matchup against Woodley instead.

Obviously that all changed again and now St-Pierre is scheduled to face Bisping in the main event at UFC 217 in New York on Nov. 4.

Woodley never forgot about that fight being dangled in front of him just like he remembers a friendly challenge with Bisping once upon a time that suddenly turned more serious when both fighters addressed the potential showdown publicly.

Now as he prepares to watch the fight at UFC 217, Woodley made it clear on a recent episode of his podcast that he wants nothing more than to face the winner of that fight while the welterweight division finds him a worthy opponent.

“Win, lose, or draw, I’m gonna want to fight the winner of that fight, Bisping or Georges,” Woodley said on “The Morning Wood Show”. “Then I’m still gonna want to come back and see all this fresh new talent in the welterweight division and I’m gonna want to show them a lesson too.”

Woodley is currently sidelined with a shoulder injury, which is giving him a much deserved break after a very busy 12 months where he fought in four title fights including two successful defenses of his welterweight gold.

Of course, White announced last week that an upcoming fight between former champion Robbie Lawler and Rafael dos Anjos would determine the next challenger for the title at 170 pounds.

Add to that, the winner of St-Pierre vs. Bisping is expected to face interim middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in 2018.

Still, Woodley has long talked about putting himself in a position to be considered the best welterweight of all time and there’s no better way to prove it than by defeating the longest reigning champion in history at 170 pounds in St-Pierre.

“I think I’ve surpassed him,” Woodley said when comparing himself to St-Pierre. “He was a person I looked up to but skill-for-skill, mindset, explosion, power, wrestling ability, timing, strategy, all those things, I feel like I’ve surpassed Georges and that’s why I want to go out there to fight him and prove it.”