Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson will have his second UFC fight at April's UFC 145. (Photo: Esther Lin / MMA Fighting)
It didn't take long for kickboxing ace and undefeated MMA fighter Stephen Thompson to get his next fight after a first round knockout win in his UFC 143 debut. He'll take on fellow UFC 143 victor Matt Brown at April's UFC 145 in Atlanta, GA.
Thompson (6-0, 1-0 UFC) used a great head kick to knock out Dan Stittgen in the opening bout of UFC 143, but he'll face a much more experienced fighter in Brown (13-11, 6-5 UFC) who beat Chris Cope by second round TKO on the same event. After three straight second round submission losses, the 31-year-old came through and beat John Howard in a must-win situation.
Brown then proceeded to lose again by second round submission to Seth Baczynski in November before his recent win over Cope. While Thompson will likely want to keep the fight standing, he does have one submission victory in his young career. Brown has been submitted nine times in his career, but has never been knocked out.
The fight is expected to be on the Fuel prelims portion of UFC 145, headlined by Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans.
0 recs | 66 comments
Good matchmaking
Matt Brown is beatable but tough
That said, WAR LUKE
IRodC - February 11, 2012
That’s just mean.
Earl Montclair - February 11, 2012
lol
Brown can’t get too far ahead of that career .500 mark he is making famous with his toughness
Ulf Murphy - February 11, 2012
I think Brown's the favorite here
this is a “let’s throw Thompson right into the deep end” move by Joe Silva.
Nate Wilcox - February 11, 2012
Brown should be a favorite
But I disagree with the notion that they are throwing Thompson into the deep end. Brown is probably going to play gatekeeper if he stays in the UFC.
discoandherpes - February 11, 2012
brown will be lucky to have a job in a few months with guys like del rosario making the bottom of the hw division full
add in the cormier type additions….no room for a lot of guys with .500 records
SDChief - February 12, 2012
Matt Brown is a TUF alum
I think he’ll stick around as long as he wins. There are plenty of other people who will probably get cut first.
discoandherpes - February 12, 2012
Could be interesting here
Tough pick for me. Gritty veteran vs. crafty technician.
I’ll take Brown UD here.
halitosis - February 11, 2012
i hope your talking about thompson as the veteran...
hes on like a 67 fight win streak or something ridiculous like that. So what if brown has more ufc fights. A fight is a fight.
brown is to slow i think for thompson and it wont end well for him. tko 2nd for tomspon
barzillatron - February 11, 2012
MMA isn't the same as kickboxing.
Surprisingly enough.
MJB! - February 11, 2012 via mobile
yea but a guy trying to beat you up
is the same as a guy trying to beat you up. doesnt matter the rule set involved.
barzillatron - February 11, 2012
Well
He hasn’t been tested against an MMA veteran, and the rules absolutely come into play. It’s naive to think they don’t. Brown has more MMA experience, and I’m thinking he makes this a dirty ground battle.
halitosis - February 11, 2012
I forgot they allowed takedowns, submissions, and ground and pound in kickboxing nowadays
Listen, it’s obvious they are pushing Thompson because they are putting him up against a name that is likely to only fight where Thompson is a known quantity (stand-up), but let’s not conflate kickboxing with MMA unless we are ready to talk about the storied MMA careers of Semmy Schilt, Mark Hunt, or Jerome LeBanner.
Enmascarado - February 11, 2012
Mark Hunt was a legitimate top 10 heavyweight in his MMA prime
and once Semmy hit his stride (the latter half of his MMA career) he only lost to the absolute best. Not to mention that Cro Cop is without a doubt one of the five heavyweights in MMA history.
Here’s a freebie for the Nike marketing team: Kickboxing #counts.
pdl - February 11, 2012
So... each one of those kickboxers got good at MMA after fighting a lot of MMA matches
It is almost as if they had to adjust to new challenges brought about by a different (but related) sport. That is really the only point I am making here, kickboxing=/=mma, and I didn’t really think that would be controversial.
Enmascarado - February 11, 2012
IMO
A great kickboxer with no other skills does better then a great wrestler with no other skills against your run of the mill jack of all trades mma fighter.
The fight starts on the feet.
cager - February 11, 2012
Disagree
Diabaté comes to mind as someone with no other skills than striking and he hasn’t exactly been impressive. Wrestlers tend to at least have the positional awareness on the ground to help them avoid subs from mediocre BJJ players, clearing the path for them to L&P until they gain ground and/or striking skills.
wonderfulspam - February 11, 2012
spam!!! where you been man?
benten20 - February 11, 2012 via mobile
Bedridden with the flu
Sorry I never got around to updating the last BECW recap. I’ll either do a UFC on Fuel primer that includes the UFC 143 rookie stats etc. or do an even more in-depth UFC on Fuel recap.
wonderfulspam - February 11, 2012
no need for apologies spam your doing an awesome job so far and if you were sick then its totally understandable
as long as your feeling alright man
benten20 - February 11, 2012
Rec'd
Cause it’s the truth.
discoandherpes - February 11, 2012
Silliest thing i've heard in awhile
I’d like to hear your definition for “beat you up” because wrestlers, bjj players etc all feel they are going in their next match to beat their opponent up
AfroSamurai - February 11, 2012
I agree with you
If Matt Brown were a decent wrestler I’d give him the edge or chance. This is a big step up for Thompson but a showcase fight none the less.
cager - February 11, 2012
57-0 as a kickboxer, 40 KOs
37-0 as an amateur
20-0 as a professional
6-0 MMA record
That’s 63-0 overall, with 43 KOs…unless he’s had some amateur MMA fights.
The guy has some real skills.
Chris Groves - February 11, 2012
He's good.
But if you go by the actual footage available, his kickboxing is good but not as impressive as his record would have you believe. Also he comes from a style of kickboxing (full contact) that is not the more adapted to MMA. He’s also mostly competed in the states which is not exactly a hotbed for kickboxing. Thompson shows promise but is a bit overhyped right now IMO. This is not a gimme fight for him, Brown is tough.
Sweet Scientist - February 11, 2012
Of course, it's not like he is a K-1 champ or anything
but still….to win all of those fights without ever getting caught, having an off night, or getting perhaps a bad call on a close fight from the judges….I think it’s still pretty impressive.
There aren’t exactly a ton of people that I believe could boast what he boasts.
According to Wiki, he’s defeated champions from Austria, Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Russia, and Latvia…
It’s not a gimme fight, but I think it’s definitely a sort of ‘tough test he should pass’ kind of thing, like when Weidman got Lawler or when Davis got Boetsch
Chris Groves - February 11, 2012
WAKO and IAKSA are pretty obscure and small federations.
They draw from a small talent pool, there’s so many kickboxing titles, most of them don’t really mean much. I definitely agree with you on the “though test” part and I’m not saying that he’s not good, I just feel like people make a bit too much of his kickboxing record.
Sweet Scientist - February 11, 2012
Brown is always good as a gatekeeper type to test prospects and up-and-comers while taking out guys like Chris Cope or John Howard. This is a tough test for Thompson as Brown is just tough as nails, very experienced, pushes a pretty quick pace, and can make a fight very ugly.
chrisbboy82 - February 11, 2012
We really can't thank The Immortal enough for what he did to the Cope
Chris Hall - February 11, 2012
Matt will try his hardest to take this down
Elitex10x - February 11, 2012
...then get submitted
rscott94 - February 11, 2012 via mobile
I like this matchup
Will get to find out if thompson has any takedown defense
19Miles - February 11, 2012
Thompson by destruction
SSreporters - February 11, 2012
This is the right choice
Matt Brown is definitely better than Stittgen…but he is very beatable.
PLEASE build him at a steady pace UFC/Joe Silva.
The last thing I want to see is Stephen Thompson vs Jon Fitch on 10 days notice or something. Just because Weidman pulled it off doesn’t mean most would.
Chris Groves - February 11, 2012
But...but Mike Goldberg told me Thompson is an American Machida!
SSreporters - February 11, 2012
He uses that karate stance a la Machida, Joe.
castleeb - February 11, 2012
who are you kidding?
He’s BETTER!!!!!
Chris Groves - February 11, 2012
He has an underrated ground game
And K-1 level striking
discoandherpes - February 11, 2012
"Let's not compare him to Machida too much, Joe"
5 second’s later
“It is important to note that his father, as well as Machida’s, encouraged his karate background.”
(paraphrasing)
halitosis - February 11, 2012
Good fight
We find out whether Thompson is a good prospect who can compete in MMA or if he’s a showcase fighter who won’t be successful. Brown is a pretty good gatekeeper. He can throw heavy shots and grapple a bit. Good match up.
discoandherpes - February 11, 2012
Just because it's awesome.
Andy Davis - February 11, 2012
Lytle was a badass
Horselover Fat - February 11, 2012
IS
Don’t think he’s done, no one retires just once anymore….not in todays economy.
cager - February 11, 2012
It's not like he retired from working
He’s still a full time fire fighter
Earltron - February 11, 2012
The guy will always be awesome, retired or not
I say this over and over like a broken record, but at the start of the 3rd round of his fight with Kevin Burns, when he caught Burns’ kick and punched him and busted Burns open…that moment alone solidified me as a lifelong fan of MMA.
I loved the run he put together afterward, the fact that he avenged a loss to Serra, got a second win over Brown, and gave Hardy his 4th straight loss.
If he comes back for a fight or two I’ll wish him the most success…but the guy retired off of a win at an event that he headlined and having won 5 of his last 6 fights….he’s got nothing to hang his head about.
Chris Groves - February 12, 2012
Good test for Thompson.
pud333 - February 11, 2012
I actually think this is a winnable fight for Brown, despite his terrible submission defense he has pretty decent takedowns
jammin.. - February 11, 2012
Brown is durable, read that "great for having Thompson showcase his “skills” so they can build a hype train around the white karate kid/ralph machio.
yay!
theworldsoldestsport - February 11, 2012
Karate vs. Heroin. FIGHT!
Negrodamus - February 11, 2012
This is high quality matchmaking.
Kudos, Joe Silva.
gzl5000 - February 11, 2012
Seems like they are testing Thompso early
Brown seems like a big jump in comp.
fightersvizion - February 11, 2012 via mobile
I love it. Good use of Matt Brown.
If Thompson’s wrestling and ju-jitsu is solid, as advertised, Matt will take a pretty epic beating, and it will be fun as hell to watch. If not, Matt will tap him out and leave him to continue developing a complete game.
Kwisatz Haderach - February 11, 2012
Anybody know how Machado is training him all the way from Dallas?
AfroSamurai - February 11, 2012
At least Brown doesn't have to worried about getting submitted.
Zachary Kater - February 11, 2012
cliched
not that it means much, but Stephen Thompson is a black belt in BJJ for what its worth these days in 2012
Ben Bauman - February 11, 2012
I got a black belt in a happy meal once
Andy and I decided to get some chicken selects. True story.
discoandherpes - February 11, 2012
He’s BB in Japanese JJ, blue belt in BJJ.
dancingChicken - February 12, 2012
What makes you say that?
It’s not like Brown has only been subbed by top level BJJ players (a la Sonnen). I’m sure Thompson’s brother-in-law will teach him a trick or two.
wonderfulspam - February 11, 2012
I wouldn't call Forrest Griffin a "top level BJJ player"
Chris Hall - February 11, 2012
Well excuse me
For disregarding fights from 2003. You’re right, of course, but my point still stands: it’s not like Brown beats up everybody but gets subbed by Brazilians (and Jeremy Horn).
wonderfulspam - February 11, 2012
I'll excuse you, but only this once.
Chris Hall - February 12, 2012
I actually didn't realize he had that much grappling experience.
Didn’t think he would have had time with all those kickboxing credentials.
Zachary Kater - February 12, 2012
I loved the post fight celebration almost as much as the knockout
Earltron - February 11, 2012
Does anyone have info on
when tickets will go on sale for 145 in Atlanta? I will definitely be going. This will be my 5th UFC – 2nd in Atlanta. Any info on when the tix go on sale will be appreciated.
treyjackson - February 11, 2012
NOOOOO Luke's UFC career is over :(
inthepipes - February 11, 2012
Michael Page vs Stephen Thompson!
would be vergood!!! two awesome strikers!
Nodir Shermatov - February 12, 2012
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