Former UFC welterweight title challenger Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson is steeling himself for a firefight when he takes on hard-hitting Joaquin Buckley at UFC 307 next month.
Thompson and Buckley will face off in a welterweight matchup on October 5 in Salt Lake City, Utah, and, chatting to RG.org ahead of the bout, “Wonderboy” is looking forward to facing a man who has arguably the most spectacular highlight-reel knockout in UFC history.
Buckley’s stunning spinning-kick KO of Impa Kasanganay looked like something out of a video game, and “Wonderboy,” who is no stranger to highlight-reel finishes himself, said he’s going to relish going up against “New Mansa” next month.
“The guy is just an athlete,” he said.
“He’s mostly known as kind of a brawler type. For him to pull that [kick] off was just crazy, and I think that’s why it worked, because nobody — even his opponent — didn’t expect that, didn’t think he was capable of something like that, which is why it worked so well. To be able to face off against Joaquin Buckley, it’s awesome.”
While both men love nothing more than to knock out their opponents, Thompson and Buckley will bring very different fighting styles to their matchup in Salt Lake City. And that clash of styles, coupled with the potential for something spectacular, has Thompson excited for what might play out at the Vivint Arena on October 5.
“I think this is a great one for the fans,” he said.
“The guy always comes to party, man. He comes to fight. He’s not the type of guy that’s just gonna lay on you. He wants to scrap. I think with a good dancing partner like him, we’re gonna put on a show that could definitely be Fight of the Night for sure.
“He’s a very bulky guy. I wonder if he’s going to fatigue a little bit, because usually the more muscular guys tire out. I would love for this to be a five-round fight.”
Thompson also revealed how the bout came into being, after he and Buckley spent some time together during UFC International Fight Week in the summer. The respect between the pair is clearly there, but the competitive fire in Buckley meant he couldn’t pass up the chance to ask Thompson if he’d be a future dance partner in the Octagon.
“Wonderboy” liked the idea, and now the two welterweight crowd-pleasers will face off in a striking battle at UFC 307.
“During International Fight Week, we were out there — me, Kevin Holland, Joaquin Buckley — were out there doing our thing and meeting fans,” Thompson explained, before recounting the moment Buckley came to him with his idea for the pair to fight.
“‘Would love to fight you, blah, blah, blah.’ I wasn’t sure if he was serious or not. But throughout the week, he just kept coming back, kept coming back. ‘Hey Wonder Boy, let’s make this happen,’” he recalled.
“So I was like, ‘Aright dude. I’ll get with my people, you get with your people, we’ll make this thing happen!’
“It was funny, Kevin Holland was kind of poking at Joaquin Buckley, calling him ‘son,’” Thompson laughed.
“‘Yo, son, you gotta talk to your daddy, son!’ because Kevin Holland knocked him out.
“So then Kevin Holland ran up to me and was like ‘Yo, Grandpa!’ I said, ‘Grandpa?’ He’s like, ‘Yeah! You beat me, and I beat him, so you’re grandpa!’”
