Stephen Thompson

Stephen Randall Thompson (born February 11, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former professional kickboxer. Thompson currently competes in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As a full-contact kickboxer, Thompson was undefeated through 37 amateur and 20 professional matches. Thompson is regarded as one of the most accomplished strikers in the UFC.

Thompson is well known for his polite demeanor, and is often cited by other fighters as one of the most respectful fighters in the UFC.

Early life Thompson was born on February 11, 1983, in Simpsonville, South Carolina. He has two sisters and two brothers. Thompson started training at the age of three, under the guidance of his father, Ray Thompson, a former professional kickboxer and owner of Upstate Karate, a karate school in Simpsonville, South Carolina.

Thompson started competing in kickboxing and karate at the age of 15. He holds black belt ranks in Tetsushin-ryū Kempo, American Kickboxing and Jujutsu.

He turned professional on May 15, 2004 against Kadir Kadri who he defeated by knockout in the fifth round.

On December 14, 2004 Thompson traveled to Montreal, Canada to face Eric Boudreau at "La renaissance du Kickboxing" event. He won the fight by technical knockout in the fifth round.

On May 21, 2005 Thompson rematched Kadir Kadri at Martial Arts May-Hem 05 in Greenville, South Carolina. He won the fight by unanimous decision.

On September 3, 2005 Thompson faced Freddie Espiricueta at the APEX – Undisputed event in Montreal, Canada. Thompson won the fight by technical knockout in the third round.

Thompson has also been featured in Martial Arts Digest magazine, Fighter magazine, and MMA Authority magazine.

Thompson has performed along with his father at the Peace Center for the Performing Arts in the “Athletes Project”, and has appeared in several TV commercials.

In 2006, Thompson joined the newly created World Combat League. He went undefeated during that year earning wins over opponents such as Antoine McRae, Armin Mrkanovic, James DeCore, Tim Williams and Carlos Tearney. He was the #1 ranked fighter in World Combat League at the end of 2006.

On January 20, 2007 Thompson fought Raymond Daniels in a highly anticipated bout. Thompson lost the bout by technical knockout due to a knee injury he suffered that left him unable to continue. However, this was later overturned into a no contest.

During his recovery Thompson chose to transition from kickboxing to professional mixed martial arts.

Ultimate Fighting Championship 2012 Thompson was expected to face Justin Edwards on February 4, 2012, at UFC 143, replacing an injured Mike Stumpf. However, Edwards was forced out with an injury and replaced by Dan Stittgen. Thompson won the fight via KO in the first round after landing a flush head kick. For his performance, Thompson was awarded Knockout of the Night honors.

Thompson lost to Matt Brown on April 21, 2012, at UFC 145 via unanimous decision (30–27, 29–27, and 30–27).

Thompson was expected to face Besam Yousef on November 17, 2012, at UFC 154. However, Thompson was forced out of the bout with a knee injury and replaced by Matthew Riddle.

2013 Thompson was expected to face Amir Sadollah on May 25, 2013, at UFC 160. However, Sadollah pulled out of the bout, citing an injury, and he was replaced by Nah-Shon Burrell. Thompson won the fight via unanimous decision.

Thompson next faced Chris Clements on September 21, 2013, at UFC 165. After dropping Clements twice, Thompson won the fight via knockout in the second round.

2014 Thompson faced future UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker on February 22, 2014, at UFC 170. Thompson won the bout via first-round technical knockout. The win also earned him his first Performance of the Night bonus award.

Thompson faced Patrick Côté on September 27, 2014, at UFC 178. Despite knocking Côté down in the third round and almost finishing the bout, Thompson ultimately won the fight via unanimous decision.

2015 Thompson was expected to headline against Brandon Thatch on February 14, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 60. However, Thompson pulled out of the fight on January 30, citing a rib injury, and was replaced by former UFC Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson.

Thompson faced Jake Ellenberger on July 12, 2015, at The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale. He won the fight via KO in the first round and earned a Performance of the Night bonus.

2016 Thompson was expected to face Neil Magny on January 2, 2016, at UFC 195. However, Magny was tabbed as an injury replacement for Matt Brown and instead faced Kelvin Gastelum on November 21, 2015, at The Ultimate Fighter Latin America 2 Finale. In turn, Thompson was removed from the card and rebooked to face former champion Johny Hendricks on February 6, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 82. He won the bout via TKO in the first round. The win also earned Thompson his third Performance of the Night bonus award.

Thompson next faced Rory MacDonald on June 18, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 89. He won the fight via unanimous decision (50–45, 50–45, and 48–47).

Thompson fought for the UFC Welterweight Championship at UFC 205, where he faced reigning champion Tyron Woodley. The fight ended in a majority draw with two judges scoring the fight 47–47 and the third 48–47 in favor of Woodley. However, there was some confusion as the result was initially announced as a split decision victory for Woodley only to be corrected moments later when the decision of a majority draw was announced, albeit with the same result of Woodley remaining champion. Subsequently, both fighters were awarded Fight of the Night bonus awards. UFC President Dana White stated that he expected that a rematch would be next for each fighter.

2017 The rematch with Woodley took place on March 4, 2017, in the main event at UFC 209. Thompson lost the bout by majority decision (48–47, 47–47, and 48–47). In a sample of 19 media pundits scoring the fight, five scored it in favor of Woodley, six scored in favor of Thompson, and eight scored it a draw.

Thompson faced Jorge Masvidal on November 4, 2017 at UFC 217. He won the one-sided fight via unanimous decision (30–26, 30–27, and 30–27).

2018 As the first bout of his new multi-fight contract, Thompson faced Darren Till on May 27, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 130. At the weigh-ins, Till weighed in at 174.5 pounds, 3.5 pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit of 171. After negotiating with Thompson's team, the bout proceeded at a catchweight, with the stipulation that Till could not weigh more than 188 pounds on the day of the fight. Till also forfeited 30 percent of his purse to Thompson. Thompson lost the bout via unanimous decision (48–47, 49–46, and 49–46). Conversely, 22 of 25 media outlets scored the bout in favor of Thompson.

2019 Thompson faced former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis in the headliner of UFC Fight Night 148 on March 23, 2019. Despite outstriking Pettis for most of the bout, he lost the fight via knockout in the second round, marking the first time that Thompson had been stopped in MMA or kickboxing competition.

Thompson faced Vicente Luque on November 2, 2019 at UFC 244. He won the fight via unanimous decision. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.

2020 Thompson faced Geoff Neal on December 19, 2020 in the headliner UFC Fight Night 183. He won the fight via unanimous decision. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.

2021 Thompson faced Gilbert Burns on July 10, 2021 at UFC 264 He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

As the first bout of his new six-fight contract, Thompson faced Belal Muhammad on December 18, 2021 at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Daukaus. He lost via unanimous decision after ending up in bottom position on the ground for a large portion of each round.

2022 Thompson faced Kevin Holland on December 3, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 42, in the main event. He won the fight by technical knockout after Holland's corner stopped the fight after the fourth round. This fight earned both the Fight of the Night award.

2023

Thompson was scheduled to face Michel Pereira at UFC 291 on July 29, 2023. However, at the weigh-ins, Pereira weighed at 174 pounds, 3 pounds over the non-title welterweight limit. As a result, the bout was scrapped.

Thompson faced Shavkat Rakhmonov on December 16, 2023, at UFC 296. He lost the fight via a rear-naked choke submission in the second round.

2024 Thompson faced Joaquin Buckley on October 5, 2024 at UFC 307 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He lost the fight by knockout in the third round.

2025 Thompson faced Gabriel Bonfim on July 12, 2025 at UFC on ESPN 70. He lost the fight by split decision. 12 out of 14 media outlets scored the bout for Thompson.

Fighting style Thompson is well known for his Kempo style of karate which he has trained in from an early age. This karate background is evident in the stance he adopts, as his feet stand far apart and he sits wide with his hands low. This style is very uncommon in MMA, with most fighters having a background in wrestling or jiu-jitsu, or striking arts like boxing, muay thai, or other styles of kickboxing. His footwork is described as "hopping back and forth", like other practitioners do such as Conor McGregor, Robert Whittaker and Zhang Weili. The benefit of this "hopping" while in neutral is that, like the low or non-existent guard, your striking and movement becomes unpredictable. The risk of being knocked out compels most fighters to keep their hands up in 'guard', but Thompson, among others such as Jiří Procházka, keeps his hands very low. The benefits of a very low guard are that your punches and elbows become very hard to predict, and one is better prepared to defend against takedowns. Thompson is more suited to keeping his hands low than other fighters who adopt more orthodox MMA stances, as he can negate the risk of being hit with a clean shot to the head through his footwork and rapid movement.

Personal life Thompson's sister is married to Carlos Machado

In 2017, he signed a contract with international modeling agency IMG Models.

Entertainment career In 2022, Thompson made his acting debut as Sensei Morozov in two episodes of season 5 of the Netflix series Cobra Kai.

Thompson appears in the 2025 documentary film Paperweight.

Championships and accomplishments

Amateur full-contact kickboxing All championship information from WonderBoyMMA.com

1999 I.S.K.A Georgia State Middleweight Amateur Champion 2000 I.S.K.A Southeast Middleweight Amateur Champion 2000 I.K.F South East Light Middleweight Amateur Champion 2000 I.K.F National Amateur Tournament Middleweight Champion 2000 P.K.C National Light Middleweight Amateur Champion 2000 U.S.A.K.B.F North American Middleweight Amateur Champion 2001 P.K.C National Light Heavyweight Amateur Champion 2001 U.S.A.K.B.F Light Heavyweight Amateur World Champion 2001 W.P.K.A Light Heavyweight Amateur World Champion 2001 I.K.F National Tournament Light Heavyweight Champion 2002 I.K.F National Tournament Light Heavyweight Champion 2002 I.K.F North American Light Cruiserweight Champion 2003 I.K.F World Light Cruiserweight Champion 2003 K.I.C.K North American Cruiserweight Champion 2003 I.A.K.S.A Cruiserweight World Champion 2005 W.A.K.O World Championships Cruiserweight Champion

Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship Fight of the Night (Three times) UFC.com Awards 2012: Ranked #8 Knockout of the Year 2015: Ranked #6 Knockout of the Year 2016: Ranked #7 Fighter of the Year & Ranked #5 Fight of the Year 2022: Ranked #4 Fight of the Year MMA Junkie 2022 December Fight of the Month CBS Sports 2016 #10 Ranked UFC Fighter of the Year 2016 #5 Ranked UFC Fight of the Year

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Gabriel Bonfim Decision (split) UFC on ESPN: Lewis vs. Teixeira

Nashville, Tennessee, United States Loss

Joaquin Buckley KO (punch) UFC 307

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States Loss

Shavkat Rakhmonov Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 296

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Kevin Holland TKO (corner stoppage) UFC on ESPN: Thompson vs. Holland

Orlando, Florida, United States Loss

Belal Muhammad Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Daukaus

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Gilbert Burns Decision (unanimous) UFC 264

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Geoff Neal Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Vicente Luque Decision (unanimous) UFC 244

New York City, New York, United States Loss

Anthony Pettis KO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Pettis

Nashville, Tennessee, United States Loss

Darren Till Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Till

Liverpool, England Win

Jorge Masvidal Decision (unanimous) UFC 217

New York City, New York, United States Loss

Tyron Woodley Decision (majority) UFC 209

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Draw

Tyron Woodley Draw (majority) UFC 205

New York City, New York, United States Win

Rory MacDonald Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Thompson

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Win

Johny Hendricks |TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Hendricks vs. Thompson

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Jake Ellenberger KO (spinning wheel kick) The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Finale

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Patrick Côté Decision (unanimous) UFC 178

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Robert Whittaker TKO (punches) UFC 170

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Chris Clements TKO (punches) UFC 165

Toronto, Ontario, Canada Win

Nah-Shon Burrell Decision (unanimous) UFC 160

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Matt Brown Decision (unanimous) UFC 145

Atlanta, Georgia, United States Win

Dan Stittgen KO (head kick) UFC 143

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Patrick Mandio Decision (unanimous) Fight Party: Masquerade Fight Party

Atlanta, Georgia, United States Win

William Kuhn Decision (unanimous) Xtreme Chaos 2

Anderson, South Carolina, United States Win

Marques Worrell Submission (rear-naked choke) Fight Party: Greenville Kage Fighting 2

Greenville, South Carolina, United States Win

Daniel Finz TKO (punches) Fight Party: Xtreme Cage Fighting 2

Greenville, South Carolina, United States Win

Jeremy Joles TKO (head kick and punches) Fight Party: Greenville Kage Fighting

Greenville, South Carolina, United States

Pay-per-view bouts

Kickboxing record (incomplete)

Wins 2005 WAKO World Championships Full Contact Cruiserweight (-86 kg) Gold Medal.

Wins IKF North American Full Contact Light Cruiserweight title.

Wins 2002 IKF USA National Amateur Championship Full-Contact Light Heavyweight title.

Wins IKF South East USA Full-Contact Light Heavyweight title.

Wins 2001 IKF USA National Amateur Championship Full-Contact Light Heavyweight title.

Wins 2000 IKF USA National Amateur Championship Full-Contact Middleweight title.