Stephen
Thompson wants to go out by giving another fighter the type of
opportunity he once received.

The longtime
Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight contender is
scheduled to face Charles
Radtke in his retirement bout at UFC
334 on Nov. 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Thompson has explained his reasoning for accepting a fight against
the unranked welterweight.

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Stephen Thompson wants to give Charles Radtke the opportunity
veterans once gave him

“Wonderboy” explained in an interview with Full Mount MMA that he
wants to leave the door open for a new wave of fighters. Thompson
believes he would not have become a perennial presence in the
welterweight rankings if established fighters had not given him
similar opportunities earlier in his career. He now wants to give
Radtke the chance to work his way up the rankings.

“Why not go out with a chance to give these other guys an
opportunity to work their way up?” Thompson said. “I wouldn’t have
made it where I am today, especially being in the Top 5 – Top 10
for so long, if it wasn’t for the guys giving me the shot. Radtke
has got tremendous potential; he is good everywhere. Why not give
this guy a chance to, if he beats me, move up the rankings?”

Thompson has won four times since his back-to-back unsuccessful
welterweight title bids against Tyron
Woodley in 2016-17. He is currently on a three-fight losing
streak, with his most recent victory coming in 2022. Meanwhile,
Radtke is 5-2 in the UFC, with his losses coming against Mike Malott
and Carlos
Prates.

IMAK ADMIN

By IMAK ADMIN

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