UFC welterweight title contender Stephen Thompson accepted a UFC 296 booking against 170-pound smashing machine Shavkat Rakhmonov for the Dec. 16 pay-per-view (PPV) in Las Vegas, working under the assumption that UFC check writers are going to pay him double for his efforts.
It’s not a bribe … it’s more of a mea culpa for boning him at UFC 291 last July.
I don’t know if UFC CEO Dana White didn’t get the memo or just doesn’t want to address the topic after getting called on the carpet early last month. Either way, his reaction to “Wonderboy’s” payout promulgation at the “Contender Series” press conference was a bit worrisome.
Here’s the isolated clip:
Dana White: If that’s what he said it must be true. pic.twitter.com/Db9eOD756o
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) September 27, 2023
“Okay … okay … if that’s what he said, it must be true.”
Thompson, 40, bailed on the UFC 291 pay-per-view (PPV) event after his opponent, Michel Pereira, failed to make weight. The promotion opted not to pay the former kickboxing champion after revealing “there was a much bigger story behind the scenes.”
“Wonderboy” has been competing under the UFC banner for more than a decade and has headlined more than half dozen fight cards. He’s a great ambassador for the sport and represents himself professionally both inside and outside the cage.
Pay the man. He’s earned it.