Tyron Woodley flattens Dong Hyun Kim by TKO in just 61 seconds
Following a disastrous performance in his last fight, Tyron Woodley bounced back in a big way on Saturday with a first round knockout over Dong Hyun Kim in China.
Woodley struggled against Rory MacDonald, rarely opening up his offense at all and spent the majority of the fight pinned against the cage offering up little in the way of a counter to his opponent's punches and kicks. His fight against Kim while extremely short was a much different performance for the top five ranked welterweight.
Kim came out ultra aggressive early trying to overwhelm Woodley, but the former Strikeforce fighter had his counter strikes cocked and ready to go as he popped the Korean during the first exchange that set the tone for the fight.
Once the fighters separated from some brief clinch work against the cage, Kim decided to uncork a spinning back first, which benefitted him well in past fights, but this time it backfired in a major way. Woodley threw his right hand at the exact same time Kim attempted his spinning punch, and the shot landed right behind his ear and the Korean Judoka crumbled to the mat.
Woodley followed up with a couple of extra strikes, but the fight was already over at that point and the St. Louis native got back on track with a knockout win in only 61 seconds into the first round.
"I needed to redeem myself quickly," Woodley said after the win.
Woodley said after the fight his plan now is to give his wife the wedding she's always wanted after they first got married four years ago, long before he was making the type of money he is today as a top ranked UFC fighter. The win also gives Woodley a much needed boost after the fight with MacDonald and could earn him another top five ranked opponent when he's ready to return either later this year or early 2015.
