None of the UFC FN 82 fighters earned more than $15 000 from UFC Reebok payouts. Stephen Thompson only got $5000 as the headliner of the event The UFC Fight Night 82: Hendricks vs Thompson Reebok payroll was almost half that of UFN 81: Dilla…
None of the UFC FN 82 fighters earned more than $15 000 from UFC Reebok payouts. Stephen Thompson only got $5000 as the headliner of the event
The UFC Fight Night 82: Hendricks vs Thompson Reebok payroll was almost half that of UFN 81: Dillashaw vs Cruz. This time, the top earning fighters got $15 000, including Johny Hendricks, Roy Nelson, Joseph Benavidez and Mike Pyle. Stephen Thompson, who scored spectacular KO win over Johny Hendricks in the main event of the evening, got only $5000 from UFC apparel sponsor.
The complete list of UFC Fight Night Reebok payments is available below (via MMAJunkie.com):
Another pair of fighters weren’t initially mentioned by MMAJunkie post: Misha Cirkunov and Alex Nicholson. But according to their tier (2 fights in UFC by Cirkunov and 1 by Nicholson) their Reebok payout should be $2500.
Stephen Thompson improved his UFC record to 7-1 this past Saturday night (February 6, 2016) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, easily dispatching of former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks in the first round of thei…
Stephen Thompson improved his UFC record to 7-1 this past Saturday night (February 6, 2016) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, easily dispatching of former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks in the first round of their main event tilt. With six straight victories behind him, MMAmania.com ponders what could be next for “Wonderboy.”
Three minutes and thirty one seconds.
That is all it took for Stephen Thompson to finish former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks in the main event of UFC Fight Night 82 this past Saturday (February 6, 2016) live on FOX Sports 1 from inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
And he made it look easy.
To put “Wonderboy’s” victory into context, understand that Hendricks has gone 10 full rounds against UFC Champion Robbie Lawler, 15 violent minutes against Carlos Condit, tangled horns with the greatest Welterweight in history as he battled Georges St-Pierre for 25 minutes, and he also defeated Martin Kampmann, Matt Brown, and a handful of others along the way.
None of those men could take “Bigg Rigg” out, and Thompson did so almost effortlessly, becoming the first person to ever stop Hendricks in his illustrious 21-fight career.
Turning 33-years old next week, Thompson is currently in his fighting prime, having won six straight fights against formidable opponents and succeedingly tough competition.
Among his six recent victories have been four knockouts, which has notched the No. 8 ranked Welterweight three $50,000 bonus checks in his last four bouts.
When he made his UFC debut in 2013, most believed “Wonderboy” would merely be a flash in the pan, as his savvy striking arsenal would be nullified by even mediocre wrestlers.
Nearly three years to the date from his Octagon debut, Thompson finished the best wrestler in the 170-pound division, and he did it by thwarting an early takedown attempt from “Bigg Rigg.”
Following his exemplary performance in Las Vegas, and considering his outstanding winning streak, one must make the conclusion that Thompson is an elite Welterweight with the capabilities of being crowned UFC Champion in 2016.
With no clear cut No. 1 contender in the 170-pound division heading into UFC Fight Night 82, it will be excruciatingly difficult for UFC brass to go with any other option than slating Robbie Lawler to defend his title against “Wonderboy” next.
Finishing a former champ in such scintillating fashion simply must be rewarded, and that could very well have Thompson battling Lawler in an epic battle at UFC 200 later this year.
For complete UFC Fight Night 82: “Hendricks vs Thompson” results and coverage of all the night’s action click here.
No. 8-ranked welterweight contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson went into last night’s (February 6, 2016) UFC Fight Night 82 from Las Vegas with a chip on his shoulder. Facing off with No. 2-ranked former champion Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks in the night’s main event, Thompson had something to prove, and he did just that. In unexpected
No. 8-ranked welterweight contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson went into last night’s (February 6, 2016) UFC Fight Night 82 from Las Vegas with a chip on his shoulder.
Facing off with No. 2-ranked former champion Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks in the night’s main event, Thompson had something to prove, and he did just that.
In unexpected fashion, Thompson came out firing, using his elite level striking to bulldoze through Hendricks, scoring a first round finish and a huge upset over a perennial title contender.
Having taken out one of the division’s best, “Wonderboy” has undoubtedly skyrocketed himself towards the top of the rankings, and should be in line for a huge fight next.
Let’s take a look at four possible options for Thompson:
All the stars aligned for former UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks going into UFC Fight Night 82 in the main event bout with Stephen Thompson. However, things did not play out like many including Hendricks thought it would go. Going into this fight, Hendricks made a series of changes that included a change at training
All the stars aligned for former UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks going into UFC Fight Night 82 in the main event bout with Stephen Thompson. However, things did not play out like many including Hendricks thought it would go.
Going into this fight, Hendricks made a series of changes that included a change at training camps as well as hiring a nutritionist in Louis Giordano. Those changes did not matter as Thompson beat him via TKO in the first round.
“Stephen Thompson was just a better man tonight,” Hendricks said at the post-fight press conference. “What can I say? He performed. I hesitated. I don’t hesitate usually. A lot of it goes into preparation. I switched camps and all these other things. But no excuses. He was just a better man.”
According to Hendricks, he will fight Thompson again.
“If somebody beats me, how do I beat them?” Hendricks said. “Because I’m pretty sure I’m gonna see him again. And if I see him again I want to make sure that it’s not the same outcome.
“I know what he caught me with. I know what he hit me with, and I know really everything that landed. But it’s still the fact that I lost.”
Hendricks cannot change what happened on Saturday night, but he can recover and come back stronger, which is exactly what he plans to do. According to Hendricks, he wants to return after the birth of his fourth child this spring.
“You get one day to prove who’s the better fighter, and he did it,” Hendricks said of Thompson. “It sucks when you lose, but, like I said, I’ll be back. I’m gonna get better. I’m gonna get stronger. I’m still figuring things out.”
Do you think Hendricks can rally back from this loss? Let us know.
Last night (Sat., Feb. 6, 2016), Ovince St. Preux and Rafael Cavalcante went to war at UFC Fight Night 82 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In a dull fight, St. Preux out-worked his opponent. Find out how below! Ultimate Fi…
Last night (Sat., Feb. 6, 2016), Ovince St. Preux and Rafael Cavalcante went to war at UFC Fight Night 82 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In a dull fight, St. Preux out-worked his opponent. Find out how below!
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight scrappers Ovince St. Preux and Rafael Cavalcante threw down last night (Feb. 6, 2016) at UFC Fight Night 82 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
St. Preux has faced some ups-and-downs inside the Octagon, but overall he’s established himself as a top-flight 205 lbs. fighter. Last night, he was looking to maintain that position by sending the dangerous Brazilian packing.
Despite coming over from Strikeforce with plenty of momentum, Cavalcante has found little recent success. In all likelihood, “Feijao’s” back was against the wall here, as a bad performance could be his last inside the UFC.
After a tentative start from both men, St. Preux seemed to injure his foot landing a low kick. It had an immediate effect on him, as his movement was less than fluid, and he tried to switch his stance to get more comfortable.
Cavalcante attacked the injured leg with some low kicks, but overall he didn’t look to capitalize much. Despite limping around the cage, “OSP” continued to control the center of the Octagon and walk his opponent down. With less than a minute remaining, St. Preux rocked his opponent with a big left hand and followed him to the mat, landing some nice strikes until the end of the round.
It wasn’t an ideal start, but nonetheless St. Preux clearly won the first round.
St. Preux seemed to recover well between rounds, and he returned to stalking his opponent with some long punches and kicks. While he wasn’t throwing a ton of strikes, it was still more than enough, as “Feijao” was barely throwing any punches at all.
With about two minutes remaining, Cavalcante slipped and allowed his opponent to take top position. From there, St. Preux landed some hard ground strikes and controlled his opponent until the end of the round.
Frankly, “Fejiao” simply didn’t do a whole lot of actual fighting in the first two rounds.
Despite his lacking aggression in the first two rounds, the Brazilian did start the final found with a high kick and big combination. However, following that singular moment, “Fejiao” retreated back into his shell, allowed St. Preux to land, and then gave up an easy takedown.
It was pretty dreadful.
From the top, Cavalcante didn’t work for submissions, sweeps, or stand ups, nor did his opponent do much with his top position. St. Preux opened up with big shots at the end of the round and nearly finished, but that brought up the obvious question.
Cavalcante had already given up. Why didn’t St. Preux try to finish him with more than 10 seconds left?
Regardless, this was a success showing by “OSP,” who overcame some adversity in the form of an injured foot. Overall, it was a pretty standard performance, as St. Preux presented his usual mix of awkward-but-heavy punches, nasty kicks, and power takedowns.
Still, against an opponent who was barely fighting back, St. Preux definitely could’ve done more. There was no reason not to push for the finish, as the Brazilian really wasn’t doing anything.
Now that he’s back in the win column, perhaps a scrap with Jimi Manuwa is in his future.
The less said about Cavalcante’s performance, the better. He simply didn’t fight for vast portions of the fight. He had two real moments of aggression, and even those were brief.
In a 15 minute fight, that’s inexcusable.
Considering this awful showing and his recent record, Cavalcante is likely done in the UFC. At this point, it seems like he doesn’t care.
Last night, Ovince St. Preux cruised past an uninspired Rafael Cavalcante. Where does “OSP” head from here?
For complete UFC Fight Night 82: “Hendricks vs Thompson” results and play-by-play, click HERE!
