Stephen Thompson feels he is getting better with age.
Thompson returned to the win column at UFC 244 back in November following an impressive performance in a unanimous decision victory over Vicente Luque. It ended a two-fight losing streak for “Wonderboy” who was notably coming off his first-ever career knockout defeat to Anthony Pettis earlier in the year.
That made it all the more important for him to put on a performance against Luque and get the win.
“Deep down, I felt like it was (a must win),” Thompson told MMA Junkie. “Because you know, I’ve had those losses and I was just knocked out, and I took all summer off to just kind of find myself and really give myself time to heal up from that knockout.
“But yeah, deep down, I felt like I had to win this fight. But I try and keep my mind off of it.”
Before Luque, Thompson’s last win came in November 2017. And following his defeat to Pettis last year, many wondered if the 37-year-old was finally past it.
But as far as Thompson is concerned, he feels 23 or 24 and believes he is just as good and improving with each passing day:
“I had some controversial losses, and then I ended up getting knocked out by Anthony Pettis – which was a first for me,” Thompson said. “I’ve never been knocked out in my entire fight career, so people were talking on social media saying, ‘Does Stephen still have it? Has his chin been affected by that?’ I’m 37, and I’m not getting any younger. But I feel like I’m 23, 24 years old, to be honest with you.
“I wanted to show the fans and the UFC that you haven’t seen the last of Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson – that I’m just as good, or getting even better. I’m still improving every day, and of course when I go back and watch that fight against Vicente Luque, there’s always something that I could have done better. And that’s the kind of mindset I have in a fight, win or loss.”
Thompson was a former two-time welterweight title challenger with his first attempt being a majority decision draw and his second attempt being a razor-thin majority decision defeat to Tyron Woodley.
But with Woodley no longer the champion, a couple more wins and “Wonderboy” could find himself challenging for welterweight gold once again.
Do you think Thompson will get another title shot in the future?