What’s the story?
One of the most dominant 170-pound fighters in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) today comes in the form of Brazilian jiu jitsu star Demian Maia, who has racked up an astonishing six-fight win streak over names such as Neil Magny, Gunnar Nelson, Matt Brown, and Carlos Condit. Maia has been patiently awaiting his shot at welterweight gold, and recently took to Twitter to express hope that he may take on the winner of the upcoming title bout between Tyron Woodley and Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson at UFC 209.
In case you didn’t know...
Maia is no stranger to competing for UFC titles, as he once shared the Octagon with one of the greatest of all time in Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva in 2010 for the middleweight title. Although his efforts proved to be unsuccessful in his attempts to become the 185-pound champ, the weight cut to 170 pounds has seemed to rejuvenated the Brazilian, who has looked the best he ever has in his career sitting at 39-years-old.
The heart of the matter:
Here’s what Maia had to say on Twitter about wanting to fight the winner of Woodley and Thompson:
It's official,so I wish you a great fight & trust the winner will give me the opportunity you both have been given. @TWooodley@WonderboyMMA
Woodley replied in kind, calling Maia a classy guy and even going as far as to pronounce that they would have already been fighting if not the the rematch against Wonderboy.
What’s next?
Maia has yet to be booked in a contest as of this writing, and may just choose to sit back and watch while Woodley and Thompson go to war for the 170-pound strap. While a catchweight bout for Maia is a possibility to keep himself busy while he awaits the result from ‘The Chosen One’ and ‘Wonderboy’, it is more likely that Maia will instead choose to wait it out.
Sportskeeda’s take:
Maia is the clear cut No. 1-contender for the winner of the bout between Woodley and Thompson, and any other decision made my the UFC is not only an injustice to the welterweight division, but to Maia himself. The Brazilian’s skill set is a dangerous one for anyone he decides to go up against, but both Woodley and Thompson pose threats of their own to Maia as well. Regardless of who emerges as the champion after UFC 209, the stylistic match-up with Maia should prove to be an interesting one.
