• UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley answers a question during the UFC 205 press conference at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on November 10, 2016 in New York City.

UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley answers a question during the UFC 205 press conference at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on November 10, 2016 in New York City. (Photo : Getty Images/Michael Reaves)

UFC 209 is still more than two weeks away but the excitement for the matches is in the air. Here are the latest UFC 209 news including Dana White calling out Tyron Woodley, referees and judges for the top matches, updated card and more.

White calls Woodley a drama queen

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The reigning UFC welterweight champion claimed racial bias from sports fans and the UFC for his treatment as champion. However, White was not having any of it and he called Woodley a drama queen in an interview with ESPN.

"The thing is with Tyron, he's a smart guy, he's a good-looking kid, he's explosive, he's got knockout power but he's a bit of a drama queen," White said.

"The way that he's talking about being treated, too and I think he means the fans, when a fight is made and Conor McGregor is a perfect example. Conor McGregor has that fight anybody, anywhere attitude but doesn't just have the attitude, he lives it," he added.

Referees and judges for UFC 209

According to MMA Junkie, "Big" John McCarthy and Herb Dean will be the referees in the top two matches on the UFC 209 card. McCarthy will be assigned to the Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson fight while Dean gets the much-anticipated Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson showdown.

The judges for the UFC welterweight title fight are Derek Cleary, Sal D'Amato and Chris Lee. On the other hand, Junichiro Kamijo, Marcos Rosales and Jeff Mullen will score the Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson fight for the interim lightweight championship.

Rashad Evans to make his middleweight debut

The former UFC light heavyweight champion was finally granted by the Nevada State Athletic Commission license to fight at middleweight, per ESPN. He will face Dan Kelly at UFC 209. Evans was supposed to fight at UFC 205 and UFC 206 but he was not cleared to fight.

UFC 209 match card

  • Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson for the UFC Welterweight Title
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson for the Interim Lightweight Title
  • Alistair Overeem vs. Mark Hunt (Heavyweight)
  • Todd Duffee vs. Mark Godbeer (Heavyweight)
  • Tyson Pedro vs. Paul Craig (Light Heavyweight)
  • Rashad Evans vs. Dan Kelly (Middleweight)
  • Lando Vannata vs. David Teymur (Lightweight)
  • Darren Elkins vs. Mirsad Bektic (Featherweight)
  • Luke Sanders vs. Iuri Alcantara (Bantamweight)