Dana White says Tyron Woodley 'full of sh*t' on Nate Diaz fight; champ fires back

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley repeatedly has expressed interest in defending his title against Nate Diaz, who is now hip to the idea.

But perhaps the main obstacle to the fight becoming a reality is getting UFC President Dana White’s approval.

Woodley (18-3-1 MMA, 8-2-1 UFC) this week told ESPN.com that he believes Diaz (19-11 MMA, 14-9 UFC) is the frontrunner to challenge for his title, adding that the UFC has offered Diaz the fight. In fact, Woodley is so confident about a potential booking this year he said, “If I had to bet the house on it, that’s my next opponent.”

White’s response?

“He’s homeless. He’s full of (expletive),” White said during an appearance Wednesday on “UFC Tonight.” “That fight was never made. You couldn’t be more wrong. He couldn’t be more full of (expletive). It’s absolutely not true. It’s so not true, that our lawyer actually hit him up today, hit his manager up and said he needs to stop saying these kind of things, because it’s absolutely not true.”

Not one to just let things slide, Woodley had a swift response on Twitter.

Woodley’s tweet was a retweet of Rafael dos Anjos, who White continues to tab as the No. 1 contender at 170 pounds.

Via Twitter:

@twooodley Shame on you #fakenews ?????? ||<><><>|| @twooodley Vergonha alheia ?????? #chacotadoano

A post shared by Rafael Dos Anjos (@rdosanjosmma) on Feb 7, 2018 at 6:06pm PST

White’s words mark his latest backlash aimed at Woodley when it comes to a possible Diaz matchup. The idea was first brought up in November, when the UFC was in search of a main event for UFC 219. Not only did the fight never materialize, but White said it was never offered despite claims by both Woodley and Diaz that it was.

White continues to stand by that and the fact that ex-lightweight champion dos Anjos (28-9 MMA, 17-7 UFC) is the fight to make for Woodley.

“I wouldn’t bet a nickel on it, let alone (Woodley)’s house. It’s not true,” White said. “It’s completely not true, and we’re looking at (Rafael) dos Anjos. Dos Anjos is the fight we’re looking at for Woodley. That’s the fight that’s a fair fight. He just won a great fight against Robbie Lawler; he looked good. And what I love about that fight is I think dos Anjos will bring it. He will come after Tyron Woodley, and it will be a great fight. That’s the fight that’s going to happen.”

Woodley’s most recent title defense took place last July at UFC 214, where he beat Demian Maia by unanimous decision. Diaz hasn’t fought since August 216, losing a close majority decision to Conor McGregor in their rematch.

Dos Anjos is on a three-fight winning streak since moving up to welterweight, most recently winning a unanimous decision over ex-champ Lawler in December at UFC on FOX 26.

For more on the UFC schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.