One of the elder statesmen of the UFC welterweight division, Stephen Thompson, wants to square off against Carlos Prates inside the Octagon.
Prates (21-7 MMA, 4-1 UFC) suffered the first loss of his UFC career last Saturday in the main event at UFC on ESPN 66, where he was outpointed by Ian Machado Garry over five rounds.
Prates struggled to find his rhythm in the first three rounds before having some success later in the fight. Although he caused Garry some serious problems down the stretch, the well-rounded approach of the Irishman—who scored four takedowns over the course of the fight—proved to be a significant challenge for Prates that night.
"The Nightmare" had notched four knockout victories (along with four Performance of the Night bonuses) in 2024. Transitioning into MMA after a stellar Muay Thai career, he has established himself as one of the deadliest strikers in the UFC welterweight division.
Now former UFC title challenger Stephen Thompson (17-8-1 MMA, 12-8-1 UFC), who won multiple world titles in kickboxing before signing with the UFC back in 2012, has called for a fight against Prates.
"It will be a striking extravaganza, if you will," Thompson told MMA on SiriusXM. "Ian Garry, he's good at the grappling, he's good at the wrestling. We are good at it to try to keep the fight standing. Me and Prates, we want the fight to stay standing. We want to see who the best striker is in the UFC.
"Wonderboy" twice fought for the UFC welterweight title against then-champion Tyron Woodley in 2016 and 2017—the first bout ended in a majority draw, while the rematch resulted in a majority decision win for Woodley.
The 42-year-old has lost his last two fights in the Octagon, suffering finishes at the hands of Shavkat Rakhmonov and Joaquin Buckley. However, he believes a matchup with Prates is something UFC fans would enjoy.
"I think that would be an amazing fight, as well. I'm all for it, to be honest with you. Carlos Prates, will you please sign the contract. Just sign the contract. Get out there, let's have some fun, let's put on a show, let's punch each other in the face, and go have a beer afterwards, maybe a few cigarettes on your part."
