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.
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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 studies Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlos Machado who is also his brother-in-law. Thompson graduated from high school in 2001 and is the Head Instructor of the children's karate program at Upstate Karate.
Mixed martial arts career
Early career in kickboxing
Thompson's father, Ray, is his trainer and manager.
As an amateur kickboxer Thompson amassed 16 titles and finished his career with a record of 37 wins, 18 by knockout and no losses.
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.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
His wide, hopping karate stance allows him to cover distance and launch kicks rapidly. Analysts and fighters have praised 'Wonderboy' for his ability to keep other fighters in his range whilst staying out of theirs. 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 and Thompson's brother, Tony, is married to Chris Weidman's sister.
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) vs. Tyron Woodley 1, Vicente Luque and Kevin Holland
Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Dan Stittgen
Performance of the Night (Four times) vs. Robert Whittaker, Jake Ellenberger, Johny Hendricks, and Geoff Neal
Fourth most post-fight bonuses in UFC Welterweight division history (8)
UFC.com Awards
2012: Ranked #8 Knockout of the Year vs. Dan Stittgen
2015: Ranked #6 Knockout of the Year vs. Jake Ellenberger
2016: Ranked #7 Fighter of the Year & Ranked #5 Fight of the Year vs. Tyron Woodley 1
2022: Ranked #4 Fight of the Year vs. Kevin Holland
MMA Junkie
2022 December Fight of the Month vs. Kevin Holland
CBS Sports
2016 #10 Ranked UFC Fighter of the Year
2016 #5 Ranked UFC Fight of the Year vs. Tyron Woodley