After misses with Magny and Kim, Stephen Thompson happy to face Johny Hendricks

Stephen Thompson

UFC welterweight Stephen Thompson wasn’t too broken up when Neil Magny was tapped to replace his former opponent, Matt Brown, opposite Kelvin Gastelum in a headliner at UFC Fight Night 78.

Magny, having lost earlier this year to Demian Maia, had recently rebounded against Erick Silva. But he wasn’t the top-ranked opponent Thompson wanted. With five straight UFC wins, he preferred a big name for his next bout.

The UFC came calling with one, but under less than ideal circumstances. Dong Hyun Kim was without an opponent after Jorge Masvidal was tapped to headline UFC Fight Night 79 opposite Benson Henderson, and the promotion thought Thompson would take it.

The problem? It was just around the corner, in Korea.

“I was like, listen, this is two weeks’ notice,” Thompson remembers telling the UFC. “I don’t feel comfortable flying all the way out there.”

Turning down fights is not a good way to endear oneself to UFC matchmakers. Thompson knows he might have used up his one exception. He might owe a favor.

“Sometime in the future, you might have to do that,” he told MMAjunkie Radio.

But for now, Thompson (11-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) doesn’t have to face that problem. The next call he got was for a showdown with ex-champ Johny Hendricks (17-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) at UFC 196, which takes place Feb. 6 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.

All but two of Thompson’s UFC fights have taken place in Las Vegas, so it’s a place he feels very comfortable, even as he takes on what’s likely to be the most difficult challenge of his career.

“This is the fight I’ve been looking for – someone in the top-five,” Thompson said. “I was very nervous and super-excited, because I know Hendricks is a tough guy. But this is why I’m in the game. I’m going for the belt, and this is the guy in my way now.”

Hendricks is known for a concussive left hand and a decorated resume as a collegiate wrestler. That makes him a tough stylistic challenge for Thompson, whose second UFC appearance ended in a heartbreak when he took on the durable Brown, known for absorbing damage and battering foes.

Thompson, a decorated former kickboxer, has faced and beaten hard-hitting opponents such as Robert Whittaker, Patrick Cote and Jake Ellenberger. None, however, have the same level of experience and pedigree.

“He’s one of the best wrestlers in the division, with the best credentials,” Thompson said. “But I don’t think he’s faced a striker quite like me, and I haven’t faced a wrestler quite like him.”

Thompson, though, is no stranger to getting a quick bump in competition. His fight against Brown came two months after a debut knockout of an overmatched newcomer, Dan Stittgen. It was widely thought to be too much, too soon. Even Thompson had his doubts.

After his loss, Thompson picked himself back up and got back to basics, working with now-former middleweight champion Chris Weidman and the Serra-Longo Fight Team, and an Olympic wrestler.

Now, the striking specialist feels ready to face someone like Hendricks.

“You can never fully emulate your opponent, but you have what you have,” Thompson said. “I know it’s going to be a tough fight. I’m looking to go three five-minute rounds. He’s a wrestler, but he likes to stand and bang. Hopefully, he does that Feb. 6.”

Such a gameplan would play much more into Thompson’s strengths, of course. But if Hendricks wrestles, he’ll just have to adapt. He can’t avoid surprises forever.

For more on UFC 196, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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