I heard your going to be ready early next year @Ruthless_RL I know a guy who will be ready then too…Let’s give the fans what they want! I’m bringing the heat back, and you know this fight will be FIRE! @ufc
— Stephen Thompson (@WonderboyMMA) September 24, 2018
Fans will have to wait to see the next title fight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight division after the champ Tyron Woodley was forced to withdraw from his fight with Colby Covington due to a thumb injury he suffered in his win over Darren Till. However, there could be another high profile welterweight bout joining them in early 2019 between former champion and knockout artist Robbie Lawler and two-time title challenger Stephen Thompson.
Thompson recently reached out to the former champ on Twitter after hearing he would be ready to return to the Octagon again in early 2019 and asked if he’d be down for the fight.
“I heard your going to be ready early next year Robbie Lawler. I know a guy who will be ready then too,” Thompson said on Twitter. “Let’s give the fans what they want! I’m bringing the heat back, and you know this fight will be FIRE!”
Lawler is currently recovering from a torn ACL which he suffered in his loss to Rafael dos Anjos in December of last year. The former champion lost his welterweight title back in 2016 at UFC 201 when he was knocked out by Woodley.
“Wonderboy” is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Till back in May in a very closely contested fight that many thought he won. Till went on to fight Woodley at UFC 228 earlier this month for the title but the champion was too good on the night shutting his opponent down in the second round and locking in a D’Arce choke to finish the fight.
Thompson has challenged for Woodley’s title on two separate occasions and been turned away by the thinnest of margins. Their first fight at UFC 205 in November 2016 resulted in a majority draw, which allowed Woodley to retain the belt. In the rematch at UFC 209 in March 2017, Woodley was declared the winner by majority decision.