Think being a champion is easy, think again.

There is a racial conversation going on in this country that just won’t go away. With the recent police shootings as well as more subtle forms of racism being called out, it’s hard to ignore the very uncomfortable topic of race. In the MMA world we seem to be sheltered from all the nonsense going on outside. It’s a mostly male dominated world that seems to forego politics for the common bond of fighting. But even our microcosm must be permeated by the macrocosm, it seems negativity and hate are permeating the octagon doors. In a recent interview on his podcast  The Morning Wood Show w/ Deez Nuts, current UFC welterweight Champ Tyron Woodley talks about racism in America and the current race driven backlash he’s received after winning the title at UFC 202.

“Just as a champion, I can tell you from experience that being the champion, the last three weeks of my life have been the complete opposite of what you think it would be… I’ve had so many people say, ‘You P-U-S-S-Y. You’re scared of this person!’ And I’m like, I just fought an hour ago. I just got the belt. I haven’t even had – ‘you should be stripped of the belt’ – and it hasn’t even been a month. Actually it’s a month today that I won the belt… “Then I’ve had people call me ‘n***er’ and monkey and all this racist stuff. And I delete the people so they’ll create another page and just go back out. People are willing to take so many hours of their day to be so negative… Some people, I look at their page and all they do all day is go against African-American athletes and try to racially slur them.”

Woodley also goes on to talk about racism in the wider sphere of influence, commenting specifically on the Colin Kaepernick situation. Recently NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the singing of the national anthem stating, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color”. This started an intense debate over social media and other news outlets.

“I didn’t see it. I just read about it afterwards. And I personally wouldn’t do that – I’m probably gonna stand up and remove my hat and put my hand across my chest and be quiet until it’s over with – but I do think that people that don’t want to be honest, they want to sweep it under the rug as if these injustices are not taking place, I have an issue with that. Because they are taking place and I really think that as a society we can’t just act like they’re not. That’s a part of the problem. “It’s just crazy that we have people – political figures and athletes and people that are owners of NBA basketball teams – they can do things that are complete, blatant, racist as all get out, racist as H-E-double hockey sticks, and there’s no crazy uproar. And I’m just like, ‘Wow.’ … People gave a little bit of a stink about it, but they’re acting like he came out at halftime with an Uzi and sprayed the other team up.”

While Tyron Woodley definitely has a point, and the statements of being called the N-word, and other unsavory slurs are very real, many are pointing to Tyron’s recent actions to being the spark for the fire. After winning the title Tyron said he didn’t want #1 contender Josh “Wonderboy” Thompson for his next opponent but wanted a “big money” fight against GSP or Nate Diaz. While it was well within his rights to make his opinions known, this didn’t sit well with many “Wonderboy” supporters. Couple this with the fact he sat out over a year to get the wait for the Robbie Lawler fight, which he won, and you can understand why Woodley isn’t exactly a fan favorite. What’s my opinion? I don’t blame the guy. While he doesn’t exactly have the big crowd personality to pull of what he’s trying to do (at least not yet), I do respect that he’s trying to put himself out there. You  have to remember, Conor McGregor just had a rematch for a fight he had no business being in in the first place yet Tyron Woodley is ridiculed for trying to do the same thing? One can see his point about the racism but honestly I think it’s an issue of him not winning over the fans and some low-lifes who have to resort to such low brow criticism. But I digress. What do you think of Tyron Woodley’s recent backlash? Warranted or just plain racism? Let us know by hitting up our comments below or head on over to our official Facebook and Twitter.