Woodley retains UFC welterweight title with majority-decision win but rematch between rivals proved no more conclusive than first fight

Over the past three and a half months Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson fought 10 rounds in the octagon, totaling 50 minutes, yet few people who watched can make strong cases regarding which of the two was better.

What’s clear, however, is that when Woodley, a wrestler from Missouri, and Thompson, a karate stylist from South Carolina, are matched, their skills and counter-prone attitudes result in more of a tight, tactical match than the type of frenetic fighting mixed martial arts fans are accustomed to.

On the heels of a tense majority draw in New York last November that, to be fair, featured strong moments from both fighters and a near finish for Woodley, the 170lb pair were rebooked for Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in an attempt to find a definitive outcome for the UFC welterweight championship.

It didn’t happen, and judges had to squeeze out a scorecard from the dry desert air to close UFC 209.

Two officials, Derek Cleary and Chris Lee, scored it three rounds to two for Woodley, giving him the second, fourth and fifth. The third judge, Sal D’Amato awarded Thompson three rounds, but saw the final period – the only round with any kind of demonstrable offense – 10-8 to Woodley for a late knockdown.

The main event limped along as Woodley, a heavy hitter who throughout his successful career has receded into punchless comas, kept a defensive posture against the longer Thompson, a stylish kicker whose southpaw stylings have been effective during his transition from point karate competition to MMA. Woodley’s hesitation – part tactics, part brain freeze – allowed Thompson to walk forward as he wished, yet he offered little in the way of effective offense during the opening two rounds.

“A lot was at stake and these guys fought the way they needed to win,” said UFC president Dana White, who saw the contest for Thompson.

The first five minutes produced just six connected strikes apiece and a feeling that both men were overthinking their case. The second period featured a right hand from Woodley that nicked Thompson under an eye, but little else that made scoring a sure thing. The Guardian saw the opening two periods as essentially tied rounds, and twice gave scores of 10-10, which UFC and Unified Rules of MMA allow for but are rarely seen.

“It was a close fight,” Woodley said after retaining the title he won in devastating fashion at the beginning of 2016 against Robbie Lawler. “It’s a chess match. It’s the top two guys in the world. It’s hard for me to just go forward. I ate a couple shots trying to get in close and it just kept me a little cautious.”

Indeed.

Woodley outstruck Thompson 66 to 42. The challenger finished 35 of 115 in significant strikes (power shots at distance) while the titleholder connected on 53 of 118 attempts. Two cautious counter fighters delivered an unfortunate main event to a card that brought out 13,150 fans for a $2.3m gate.

Action picked up between the 34-year-old fighters in the latter half of the bout. In the third period Woodley, an All-American and team captain for the Universty of Missouri wrestling program in the early 2000s, managed his only successful stint of grappling. During the first contest with Thompson he battered the striker on the floor and many analysts suspected he would focus on grounding and pounding his challenger in the rematch. But, save a short stretch in the middle of the bout, it failed to materialize outside of one strong takedown along the fence.

“I knew he was going to look for the takedown,” said Thompson, whose record fell to 13-2-1. “I had to play it smart.”

Thompson’s best round was the fourth. Woodley (17-3-1) absorbed a spinning wheel kick to his head and appeared to be laboring.

Heading to round five the champion’s corner asked him to find a new aggression and, hopefully, a finish. Woodley attempted as best as he could to reach Thompson’s chin by slinging wild right hands, once of which put his foe on the canvas late in the period.

“He did a way better job of reading the space,” Woodley said. “He made it hard for me to come in close. In the last round we all know I went out there for the kill. I wish I woulda did that a few other rounds. But it was a good fight. I knew it was close. I was just praying and making sure the belt stayed home.”

His prayers were answered, and the St Louis based fighter should consider himself fortunate.

Without a clear contender on deck, the UFC will likely book Woodley against the winner of a contest between Demian Maia and Jorge Masvidal, which is slated for 11 May at UFC 211 in Dallas.

The poor headliner made it easy to forget the action that preceded it.

An anticipated contest pitting top lightweights Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson was scrapped on Friday because Nurmagomedov was hospitalized during his weight cut to 155lbs. The undefeated 28-year-old Dagestani fighter had made much noise about his top spot in the UFC, however he failed yet again to make a booking he had agreed to. Nurmagomedov could not come within six pounds of the lightweight limit before the bout was cancelled by the promotion following weigh-ins.

Set as an interim title at lightweight while current champion Conor McGregor takes time off to support his pregnant girlfriend and pursue a boxing bout with Floyd Mayweather, the removal of Nurmagomedov-Ferguson removal from the card elevated a fun scrap between Lando Vannata and David Teymur.

The lightweights made the most of their slot beneath the main event, slugging it out in style for three rounds leading to unanimous decision for the underdog Teymur. The fight of the night’s high-tension action mirrored the earlier pay-per-view contests.

Middleweight Dan Kelly, 39, used pressure, volume and a wide-range of techniques to stifle 37-year-old Rashad Evans, who made his first appearance at 185lbs. Kelly’s decision win pushed the four-time Olympic judoka from Australia to 6-1 in the UFC.

Needing to fill an empty slot on the main card, the UFC pushed up a female fight at 115lbs. Cynthia Calvillo made the most of her Octagon debut, forcing a stylish rear-naked choke submission in the opening round against Amanda Cooper.

Kicking off the featured fights, veteran heavyweights Alistair Overeem and Mark Hunt met for the second time in the careers. In 2008, Overeem submitted Hunt with an armlock. He moved to 2-0 against the veteran slugger by slamming a fight-ending knee off the Super Samoan’s face in the third round. Overeem was battling food poisoning prior to the hard-won contest, but did not show any ill effects.

UFC will return to pay-per-view action on 8 April in Buffalo, New York, with a light heavyweight title bout featuring defending champion Daniel Cormier and the dangerous Anthony Johnson.