Sean Woodson talks path to MMA, origin of nickname, and headlining Shamrock FC 307

The man that goes by the nickname, “The Warrior,” will be in the main event of Saturday’s Shamrock FC 307 as Sean Woodson will look to remain undefeated in his young career when he takes on twenty-five fight veteran Dawond Pickney in the main event of the fight card that will be streamed live on FloCombat.

Every fighter has a story and their path to the fight game and for Woodson, it started at a young age. He remembers watching boxing with his father at a young age and he begged his parents to take him to a boxing gym. Following a trip to the pediatrician, Woodson’s mom gave into his request and he stepped into a boxing gym. Which begs the question, why mixed martial arts over boxing?

“When I first heard of mixed martial arts, kicking is for girls. I don’t really like that,” Woodson told The MMA Report. “But I got into a bad car accident when I was fifteen years old and I could not drive to the boxing gym because it was about a thirty minute drive. My mom found Matt Hughes Hit Squad and they had the dorm rooms where you could live there and I would not have to travel back and forth. Ended up moving into the dorm rooms there with only having boxing. Did not know how to kick. Had no grappling at all. They threw me right in and I was sparring with UFC guys. I learned it that way.”

Woodson (4-0) would ultimately make his professional mixed martial arts debut at RFA 44 in 2016 and he opened his career with back to back first round victories. Since those fights, he’s won back to back fights by unanimous decision and Saturday night will mark his fourth fight to take place inside the Shamrock FC cage.

Initially, he was not scheduled to fight on Saturday’s event. However, Garrett Gross pulled out of the main event when he was offered a fight on the July 31 episode of Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series and Woodson is stepping up on relative short notice to take on Pickney in a lightweight bout.

“Dawond is a tough opponent. I feel like he’s my toughest opponent to date. He’s super experience and a lot of guys are not giving him the credit he deserves,” Woodson said. “He’s had a good amount of losses, but he’s fought tough guys. He has fought all over the world. He’s a veteran. Here I am. I’ve only had four professional fights and he’s coming up on thirty pro fights. Feel like it will be a good test and a good fight for me to show where my skill set is at.”

Shamrock FC 307 will be available on FloCombat on Saturday and follow Sean on Instagram.