At welterweight, Stephen Thompson has accomplished everything except winning the title. Regardless, he says that he would only be interested in moving to middleweight for one specific fight.
Back in 2016, Wonderboy came as close to becoming welterweight champ as you can be, without actually winning the belt. Taking on Tyron Woodley, he actually won three rounds on two judge’s scorecards, but a couple of 10-8 rounds led to the bout being ruled a draw. The two would rematch, but this time Woodley would walk away with the decision.
Stephen Thompson At Middleweight
Following that bout, things have been up and down for Stephen Thompson, with some wins and losses along the way. This, coupled with the fact that he holds a dominant win over former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker, has led people to wonder if a move to 185lb was in order for the Karate expert. Speaking in a recent interview, he shut down this idea, saying that only one fight interested him there.
“I always told myself if I ever got the title and Robert Whittaker was still champion at that weight, you know, because I faced him before that it would be cool to go up and fight him again. But to be honest with you, I’m not even a big welterweight. I walk around at 190, 195. You know, when I spar guys, and train with guys like Chris Weidman whose a 185er, just to feel the power and strength of these guys is ridiculous. When he grabs me by my wrist I feel like a five-year-old, I can’t get away. So to face guys like him in that division, because I’m not a big guy, I would literally have to put on some muscle, put on some weight to move up to that middleweight class.
“So, as of right now (no). In the future, I don’t know. I mean if Adesanya is still champion, if I get that title, that could be a possibility, just to mix things up.”
I asked Wonderboy about going up to middleweight. He's not *totally* against it, but says it would be tough. Seems open to an Adesanya fight. 👇 pic.twitter.com/zZgQk1nOyY
— Seán Sheehan (@SeanSheehanBA) June 11, 2020
Do you have any interest in seeing Stephen Thompson face Israel Adesanya?
