Rumors of Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson’s demise were greatly exaggerated.
Following two straight losses, the 39-year-old veteran was suddenly fielding questions about his potential retirement but he gave an emphatic answer with his performance on Saturday night as he dismantled Kevin Holland over four rounds in the UFC Orlando main event.
While he did have to bounce back from an early punch that had him wobbled, Thompson just poured on the punishment until Holland’s corner mercifully called a stop to the contest after the end of the fourth round. The win puts “Wonderboy” back on track following a truly dazzling showcase.
“My last two performances, I lost to grapplers,” Thompson said afterwards. “I wanted to show to the UFC and the fans that ‘Wonderboy’s still here. I feel like I’m 25. I’m still here for the long haul and I’ve still got it. His hard noggin is tough. His hard nose .”
is making my hands ache right now.
With a pair of dynamic strikers in the cage, Holland and Thompson had little worry about defending takedowns, which meant they could unleash everything in the arsenal on the feet. Thompson was able to tag Holland with his straight left hand early on, and he continued doing so in almost every exchange.
Holland displayed an incredible chin as he kept absorbing Thompson’s best punches and then firing back with a ton of power in his hands. As the welterweights continued trading blows, Holland cracked Thompson with a nasty right hand that wobbled the two-time UFC title challenger.
Holland swarmed on him but Thompson survived the onslaught before the fighters reset in the center of the cage.
Once he recovered from the punch, Thompson settled down into a rhythm as he began unleashing head kicks to go along with his boxing combinations and Holland was struggling to keep up with his speed. Holland was constantly being tagged by Thompson because of his quick hands and fast kicks.
Thompson was surgical with his combinations as he really began popping Holland with his punches, which then allowed him to set up his creative kicks. Holland was savagely beaten by “Wonderboy”, who unleashed a wicked spinning heel kick late in round 3.
With the momentum in Thompson’s favour, Thompson began to target Holland’s midsection and unloaded several shots at the ribs. Holland was clearly hurt from the body shots and he was backed against the cage just trying to avoid further damage.
Thompson was then aiming for Holland’s head, and began throwing spin kicks at Holland that continued to blast him. He refused to give up. He was suffering from severe injuries to his right hand and the damage was obvious. His coaches stopped him fighting.
Holland and his corner decide to call off the fight after four hard fought rounds at #UFCOrlando pic.twitter.com/0QbvuNzD6S
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 4, 2022
“I think I hurt him in the first round and after that it was hurting,” Holland said about his hand injury. “A little faster than I thought but definitely what I expected.”
It was a vintage outing from “Wonderboy,” who has long been considered one of the top 170-pound fighters in the UFC yet two losses to Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad had many curious if perhaps his best days were already behind him.
Thompson certainly put those rumors to bed with his win on Saturday as he remains a constant threat to anyone and everyone in the welterweight rankings.
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2022/12/4/23492230/stephen-wonderboy-thompson-puts-on-dazzling-showcase-to-stop-kevin-holland-in-ufc-orlando-main-event?rand=96749
