Wonderboy dominates The Red King.
The UFC welterweight division has a number No.1 contender after Stephen Thompson won a unanimous decision over Rory MacDonald at UFC Ottawa.
The 33-year-old is now on a seven win streak after outclassing MacDonald in front of his adoring home fans.
Thompson never let MacDonald get close enough to do much striking damage and kept his opponent at bay with a series of smart kicks and parries. MacDonald attempted a couple of heel hook takedowns but Thompson slipped loose and stuck to his measured gameplan.
With former UFC middleweight champ Chris Weidman in his corner, Thompson continued to attempt and land the most significant strikes. MacDonald knew he had to go for broke in the fifth and final round and charged his opponent successfully on a couple of occasions.
Thompson had enough in the tank and was swift enough to get in and get out of a couple of flurries. A sign of his comfort in the octagon was a wheel kick landed on MacDonald’s crown in the final round and further opened up his damaged nose.
The judges scored the fight 50-45, 50-45 and 48-47 in the South Carolinan’s favour.
I hope this doesn't upset Rory's chances of a seriously improved UFC contract but it could well do. Thompson a bad match-up for everybody.
— Darragh Murphy (@DarrMurphy) June 19, 2016
In his octagon interview, Thompson had only one fight on his mind for his next outing. He declared:
“Title belt, baby! Title belt! I want the winner of Robbie Lawler and Tyron Woodley, baby. New York.”
Thompson was referring to the planned UFC 205 event at Madison Square Garden, New York this November.
On the basis of picking the highly-rated MacDonald apart, he has pressed an irresistible case for a title shot.
