Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson successfully made weight for his scheduled fight at UFC 291, fulfilling his part of the agreement.
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Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson successfully made weight for his scheduled fight at UFC 291, fulfilling his part of the agreement. However, his opponent, Michel Pereira, had difficulty meeting the weight requirement and tipped the scale at 174 pounds, indicating that he failed to make weight.
As a result of Pereira coming in three pounds over the welterweight limit for the non-title fight, Thompson chose not to accept a catchweight bout, leading to the cancellation of the scheduled fight. Despite the bout being scrapped from the card, Thompson did not receive any compensation from the UFC immediately. However, he remains hopeful that the situation might change in the upcoming days.
“At this point my management is talking with the UFC,” Thompson said of his pay on The MMA Hour. “[I’ve been paid] nothing yet. I know Dana White’s on vacation. That guy’s a workaholic, so well deserved, but I feel like the UFC is going to do right by me.
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Having fulfilled all his obligations and abided by the contracts with the UFC, Thompson expressed his commitment to integrity. He believes that the UFC will treat him fairly. Currently, discussions are ongoing, but there has been no resolution yet. Thompson suspects that decisions may be pending until Dana White returns from his vacation, and he remains hopeful for a positive outcome.
“I’ve done everything that I am supposed to do. I tried to be as honorable as possible when it comes to signing my contracts and abiding by it and doing what the UFC has said. I’ve done what they’ve wanted of me, and I feel that they’re going to do right by me. Things are still in talks. I think they’re waiting for Dana White to come back from his vacation, and we’ll go from there. But at this point, nothing.”
During UFC 291, Dana White was enjoying his vacation in Italy, which meant he wasn’t present. Stephen Thompson anticipates that he will receive more information regarding potential compensation once the UFC president is back in action after his vacation.
As the final decision is still pending, the two-time UFC welterweight title challenger acknowledges that it would be difficult not to feel disappointed if the promotion decides not to provide any form of compensation.
“100 percent, yes, I’ll be disappointed,” Thompson said. “Who wouldn’t be? When you show up and you’re on point, and you have done nothing wrong and your opponent has. It would just really stink if that was the case
Thompson’s preferred solution would involve the UFC implementing a provision in future bout agreements to safeguard fighters who encounter similar situations. He currently bears the full cost of his training camp, and unless the UFC steps in with compensation, he will have to cover the expenses out of his own pocket.
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