LOS ANGELES -- The UFC welterweight title held by Tyron Woodley has one of the richest legacies of any championship in the history of mixed martial arts.
It has has been held by a who’s who of the sport’s greats, from original champion Pat Miletich to Matt Hughes to B.J. Penn to Georges St-Pierre to Robbie Lawler and now on to Woodley.
The belt, though, originated in a more primitive time in which the UFC had fewer weight class. And with ongoing issues with weight-cutting rearing its ugly head on a seemingly monthly basis, the 15-pound jumps from lightweight (155) to welterweight and from welterweight to middleweight (185) seem too big for too many fighters.