Woodley defends welterweight title after thrilling draw vs. Thompson

Tyron Woodley and Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson brought the first MMA classic to Madison Square Garden.

After a back-and-forth battle that ended in a majority draw (48-47 Woodley, 47-47, 47-47), Woodley successfully defended his title against Thompson in the co-main event of UFC 205 in New York City on Saturday.

A confused Bruce Buffer initially announced the fight as a split decision win for Woodley, though the end result was the same after he was corrected.

Though it wasn't the dominant performance that Woodley was looking for in his first title defense since knocking out Robbie Lawler for the welterweight belt this past July, "The Chosen One" showed plenty of skill, toughness, and mental fortitude in his 25-minute war with Thompson.

The champion cruised through the first round after catching a Thompson kick and putting him down on the mat. Thompson's nose was busted open by a quick elbow from Woodley, who stayed on top and peppered Thompson with effective ground-and-pound.

Thompson was determined not to suffer the same fate in Round 2 and he deftly picked Woodley apart from a distance. Woodley simply couldn't get his back off the fence as he searched for an opening to take Thompson down again. It was more of the same in Round 3 and it looked like the challenger was ahead on the cards heading into the championship rounds.

In the fourth, the action decisively turned back in Woodley's favor as he landed two huge right hands that had Thompson on the edge of consciousness.

Somehow, Thompson survived both that onslaught of strikes and a tight guillotine choke attempt by Woodley. He resumed his mastery of the distance in Round 5, effectively countering Woodley and avoiding any further takedowns. However, due to the 10-8 score that Woodley compiled in the fourth round, the welterweight title would still leave the Octagon around the reigning champion's waist.

Thompson fails to secure victory inside the Octagon for the first time in his past eight fights, though he still hasn't lost since being outpointed by Matt Brown in April 2012. Post-bout, he called for an immediate rematch with Woodley.

Related: Social media reacts to Woodley vs. Thompson ending in majority draw