Issue 140
April 2016
It’s been a few years since traditional martial arts were at the forefront of MMA, but now Stephen Thompson is here to carry karate back to the top.
Dialogue
Stephen Thompson, UFC welterweight
Alias: Wonderboy
Age: 33
Team: Upstate Karate/Pitch Black MMA
Record: 12-1
Stephen Thompson announced his arrival among the welterweight elite in some style in January. He came to Las Vegas as a clear underdog to Johny Hendricks, but left as one of the leading contenders in the 170lb division. And now he’s targeting his karate kicks on Robbie Lawler and a shot at the UFC championship.
In the weeks before UFC Fight Night 82, ‘Wonderboy’s fight with ‘Bigg Rigg’ was bumped-up to headline status in the wake of a heavyweight title fight collapse. That meant a higher-profile spot on the bill and the potential for 25 minutes of fighting instead of just 15. That was familiar territory for the former 170lb leader following his championship campaign, but a task contender Thompson had only flirted with in his previous fight against Jake Ellenberger – and that contest was all over well before the fourth and fifth rounds came around.
Yet the Simpsonville, South Carolina native was unfazed by the occasion and took just three-and-a-half minutes to topple his opponent with a precision striking assault. It was a win rooted in a lifetime of martial arts practice at the highest level and it elevated him to third in the weight class’ rankings. The casual observer must have wondered how oddsmakers could possibly have favored his opponent.
The 33-year-old has quietly and gradually elevated his standing from being a mere curiosity with an archaic fighting style for MMA to leading the new game-changing resurgence of traditional martial arts. But if you’ve been paying attention to his streak of knockouts and lessons in giving out a licking, you might have seen this coming for some time.
Q. What does your win over Johny Hendricks mean for your title aspirations?
A. I was expecting to go five, five-minute rounds with Johny Hendricks. He’s as tough as they come. He has gone 10 rounds with Robbie Lawler. I just stuck to my game plan and kept him at the ends of my hands and feet. The game plan worked to perfection. I went out there and finished Johny Hendricks decisively. I know what I am capable of.
I came in with confidence from my camp and I knew I could put him away. I just had to find a way to do it. I knew he was going to look for the takedown. I just had to keep the fight standing up and I knew it was going to happen. I believe that win put me in line for a title shot. That is my goal: to be the best fighter in the world. I want that belt.
Q. Would you say this was your best performance inside the Octagon so far?
A. Actually, I would have to say my fight with Jake Ellenberger. That was my favorite fight and I think my best performance against a really good opponent. It showed that I went from being knocked down in the first round to knocking him down and out with a spinning hook kick, not once but twice during the fight. I think it shows the variety of what I have. It showcased a bit of my wrestling and my ground game.
I would urge fans to go back and watch that fight. He smoked me in the first round, which dropped me like a flash knockdown. I could still see. I was still coherent. I remember walking out after I finished him and asking my coach if that was the first round. I thought it was the second round. He really smoked me. After that fight I knew I had taken Jake Ellenberger’s best shot and he has put a lot of people away with that punch. That gave me a lot of confidence.
Q. What’s it been like training with former middleweight champion Chris Weidman?
A. It’s been great. He’s a really tough guy. He’s very competitive. When he has a new guy come in he tries to break them. He wants to see what they have mentally and emotionally. I didn’t find this out until later but he told me he was trying to break me in our first sparring session.
I could tell during the session that he was going hard. He is a big guy. He walks around over 200lb. He’s a monster. In my head I was saying, ‘I’m not going to let him break me!’ I was going to go out there and give 100% and let him know I am a good sparring partner and I can be beneficial to his camp. It was good, it was an intense sparring session. It was my most memorable moment in training for sure.
Q. Did your father’s success as a professional fighter and owner of a karate school inspire you to compete?
A. He’s always been my hero and I’ve always looked up to him as a role model, but I thought he was a superhero when I saw him fight. I was very young. He was fighting in one of the first no-rules competitions in the US. It was long before the UFC. You could kick the leg at any angle, you could stomp the head and you could kick the groin. It was a really cool tournament and to watch him out there definitely inspired me to start competing.
Q. What do you enjoy watching most as a spectator of mixed martial arts?
A. Definitely guys with a karate background. Guys like Gunnar Nelson, Lyoto Machida and even Conor McGregor. I like to see the karate style used by these guys and how they choose to use it. I pick stuff up from every one of these guys and use it in my game. It’s very exciting to watch these guys go out there and use the same style as I do, for MMA. It’s a game changer. The game has evolved so much and I think karate has helped in that evolution.
Q. Is it true your sisters ex-boyfriend gave you your nickname?
A. Man, I was always trying to dance like Elvis Presley. My dad is a huge fan of Elvis so his music was always blaring around the house. (He) would call me Stevie Wonder, too because I would be dancing with the shades on.
Main card cash out
Bright lights bring out his best
Thompson has featured on three main cards during his UFC tenure and walked away with a ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus every time. He earned his $50,000 checks with a TKO of current middleweight contender Robert Whittaker at UFC 170 and a KO of Jake Ellenberger with back-to-back spinning kicks at the TUF 21 Finale, before obliterating Hendricks.
