Woodley is a bright MMA prospect with some solid wrestling credentials. He is a former Missouri high school wrestling state champ and a 2 time NCAA D1 All American at the University of Missouri alongside current Bellator Welterweight champion, Ben Askren. Woodley's wrestling and athleticism is very evident in his fighting style.
Woodley tried out for The Ultimate Fighter 9 as an amateur and was one of the final cuts before the show started. Woodley then made his Strikeforce debut in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. Although he is still early in his career Tyron has already beat some of the best Welterweights outside of the UFC with his biggest victory coming against UFC veteran Paul Daley. He also boasts victories over fellow top prospects Jordan Mein and Tarec Saffiedine. Tyron recently lost to Nate Marquardt in a fight for the vacant Strikeforce Welterweight Championship. A key to this fight was Woodley choosing to switch chances in attempt to surprise Marquardt with different angles of punches. However, the veteran Marquardt was well prepared for different stances, while the less experienced Woodley was less ready to defend. Marquardt was able to rock Woodley several times whenever the switch was attempted, before scoring the knockout in the fourth round.
Woodley would sign with the UFC following the closing of Strikeforce and would make his debut in spectacular fashion with a TKO over Jay Hieron. Hieron was a well respected veteran, but it only took the "Chosen One" 36 seconds to finish him. Woodley would then announce he would like to fight any of the welterweights fighting in the main card of UFC 158. He wouldn't get that wish but he would get a fight at UFC 161 against Jake Shields. He would end up losing a Split Decision to the former Strikeforce champ. He would bounce back and pick up his second UFC win when he finished Josh Koscheck in the first round of their fight at UFC 167. The TKO finish would earn Woodley Knockout of the Night.
Woodley would follow up with another win at UFC 171 when he took on Carlos Condit. After securing a takedown in the second round it seemed as though Condit was in a lot of pain. When the fight got back to the feet Woodley threw a leg kick and it buckled Condit's other knee doing serious damage. Woodley would take the win by TKO in the second round. Woodley would look to get a step closer to a title shot at UFC 174 when he faced Rory MacDonald but would come up short losing a decision. He has already scheduled another fight as a replacement for Hector Lombard against Dong Hyun Kim. He was able to finish the Dong in the very first round earning a Performance of the Night bonus in the process. He would follow up with a split decision over Ultimate Fighter winner Kelvin Gastelum.
