Everyone should take notes from Stephen Thompson on how to handle a loss.
Throughout his entire kickboxing and MMA career, two-time UFC welterweight title challenger “Wonderboy” had never been stopped in a fight.
But that ended at UFC on ESPN+ 6 in Nashville at the hands of former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis, who had moved up to 170 pounds and was a heavy underdog going into the bout.
It was a technical chess match, but with seconds winding down in Round 2, Pettis threw a Superman punch that Thompson never saw coming. It knocked him out cold.
In typical “NMF” fashion, the always humble Thompson decided to relive that experience with his fans on Twitch, where he rewatched the knockout.
Thompson agonized when he watched himself hit the mat, and even emulated his motions when he stiffened up. He rebounded nicely though, with a unanimous decision win over the streaking Vicente Luque at UFC 244 and picked up a $50,000 bonus to go with it.
They say you’re only as good as your last fight, but the Pettis loss might take a while for Thompson to forget about. At least he’s a good sport about it.
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