A recent development in Stephen
Thompson’s personal life greatly influenced his decision to
retire.
Thompson (17-9-1) is scheduled to fight Charles
Radtke (12-5) in his final
Ultimate Fighting Championship bout at UFC
334 on Nov. 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Thompson
will be hanging up his gloves after 14 years in the UFC and
recently opened up about why he is retiring.
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How becoming a father influenced Stephen Thompson’s retirement
plans
Thompson says he doesn’t want to take serious damage at 43 against
up-and-coming fighters who are much younger. He further revealed
that his decision was also influenced by the birth of his now
five-month-old daughter.
“I don’t see the title anymore,” Thompson told Ariel Helwani.
“These guys are just young studs coming up. I’m not trying to get
hurt. But I think more importantly than that, I don’t know if you
know this, but I have a baby girl… She just turned five months…
Obviously, I’ll still be teaching the martial arts and training and
stuff like that. But it does change your mindset a little bit.”
Thomspon’s notable wins include victories over Robert
Whittaker, Rory
MacDonald, Johny
Hendricks and Jorge
Masvidal, among others. “Wonderboy” fought Tyron
Woodley to a draw in his first title challenge in 2016 and
dropped a majority decision in their title rematch the following
year. Thompson is 12-9-1 in the UFC and on a three-fight skid
heading into his retirement fight.
Wonderboy opens up about his decision to
retire following UFC 334: “I don’t see the title anymore. These
guys are just young studs coming up. I’m not trying to get hurt.
But I think more importantly than that, I don’t know if you know
this, but I have a baby girl… She just turned five months.“— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani)
November 9, 2026