Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson finds it a little crazy that Colby Covington is getting his third opportunity at a UFC title this December.
Six months after announcing that Covington would be the next man to challenge Leon Edwards for the welterweight world title, UFC CEO Dana White finally delivered fans a date for the long-awaited championship clash. The bout will go down on December 16 when the promotion returns to the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden, for UFC 296.
Speaking with James Lynch in a MiddleEasy exclusive interview, ‘Wonderboy’ was admittedly shocked to see Covington have another title shot handed to him with so many more deserving fighters waiting for their own opportunity. As far as who he sees walking out of MSG with the gold, Thompson believes the third time will not be the charm for Colby Covington this winter.
“I think it’s crazy that this dude is fighting for the third time for a title,” Thompson said. “It doesn’t make sense to me. There’s definitely more guys deserving to fight for the title than Colby at this point, but who do I have winning that fight? I’ve got Leon winning the fight. Colby Covington is a smaller guy than [Kamaru] Usman and you saw what Usman did to Colby.
“I think Leon can defend the takedown, keep the fight standing, and pick him apart. The only way I feel like Colby could win if is Leon comes out of shape. Colby Covington is one of the best in-shape fighters in the biz. He always comes in shape. He’s relentless, but from what I see… How we saw Leon finish Usman, I believe he can do the same thing to Colby.”
Odds for the upcoming #UFC296 card in December are now up on @BodogCA
Leon Edwards (-135) vs. Colby Covington (+110)
Paddy Pimblett (-350) vs. Tony Ferguson (+275)
Shavkat Rakhmonov (-450) vs. Stephen Thompson (+350)Thoughts? https://t.co/PWQ2bJ5SCk pic.twitter.com/tsdfRrH9gx
— James Lynch (@LynchOnSports) September 26, 2023
‘Wonderboy’ Considers Himself a Fan of Sean Strickland
‘Wonderboy’ also shared his appreciation for Sean Strickland’s perfectly executed performance against Israel Adesanya that earned him the middleweight title at UFC 293.
“It kinda brought me back to when [Michael] Bisping beat Luke Rockhold. Nobody saw that coming, but I think that played in Strickland’s favor. He had nothing to lose, so he just came forward which is something that Izzy is not used to. He usually feints guys up and they react to those feints and stay away from him, but Strickland was like, screw this. I’m coming at you, and it just kind of threw Izzy off guard and [Strickland] just walked through everything he threw.
“And knocking him down. Once that happened, it just mentally messed [Izzy] up. And Strickland’s one of those guys that doesn’t let those things get to him. The only way to beat Strickland is to do what Alex [Pereira] did. Make him walk backward and finish him that way. He doesn’t do that well walking backwards and that’s what Alex Pereira did. But Izzy didn’t do that. He backed up and Strickland’s punches came right down the pipe and he beat him.”
While you can’t deny his skills inside the Octagon, many fight fans are still on the fence when it comes to Sean Strickland courtesy of his often outspoken and sometimes vile commentaries on multiple subjects.
Though he may not always agree with what ‘Tarzan’ says, Thompson appreciates the utter honesty and, as a result, considers himself a fan of the new middleweight king.
“We are opposites, but I like his honesty. I love it, man. I’m glad,” Thompson said. “He’s American. He loves America. He loves his people. He just doesn’t care what anybody thinks and I think that’s why I respect him. He doesn’t care. He reminds me of my dad. He’s that 70-year-old guy who deserves to say whatever he wants and doesn’t care what anybody else thinks of him and I respect that about him.
“There’s too many people in this world that care about what other people think. He doesn’t care one bit so you gotta respect that and to be honest with you, I’m a big fan of Strickland.”
Watch the full interview below:
