After conquering depression, Tyron Woodley plans on “coming out swinging” against Gilbert Burns

UFC welterweight contender Tyron Woodley has opened up on his battle with depression ahead of his fight against Gilbert Burns this weekend.

Woodley and Burns are set to square off this Saturday night, but prior to that, Woodley has taken the time to reflect on the journey he’s been on to get him back to this point.

The former champion spoke about some of the issues he’s been dealing with during the UFC virtual media day earlier this week.

“I went into a state of depression for a while,” Woodley said (via MMA Junkie). “I really wasn’t talking to many people, I was eating terrible, I wasn’t training, and I just really didn’t expect – I felt like all my competition before Kamaru Usman was my stiffest competition. I felt like all the great welterweights I beat before then would be my toughest competition. I didn’t take anyone lightly. I didn’t think it was going to be cruise control at that point, but I felt like I had those five rounds mapped out so well. I felt like my strategy, my gameplan, my studying, my coaches, my team, I felt like I had everything in position to win. So I really had to deal with that, and it took longer than any other fight in my career.

“I got to the point where I felt like I faced it head on. I felt like I’m a better person, I’m a better fighter, a better human being because of it. I felt like it was necessary for my journey,” Woodley added. “Sometimes you see guys, and they just go from the bottom to the top and they spring all the way though. They got everybody helping them out, whether it’s media push or social media, and they just got all the things given. It’s the people who have to bounce back, who have to face adversity and have to show the fans what they’re made of – that they’re just not going to crawl into a ball.”

How do you think Tyron Woodley will look in his return to the cage tomorrow?