Stephen Thompson Announces Retirement After UFC 334

Stephen Thompson will hang up his gloves after UFC 334 at Madison Square Garden.

The 43-year-old welterweight confirmed to Ozoon that his November bout against Charles Radtke represents his final octagon appearance, according to reports from MMA Junkie and BJPenn.com. Fatherhood drove the decision, Thompson said, though he emphasized feeling physically sound enough to continue competing.

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Fatherhood Drives Thompson's Decision To Walk Away

Thompson now refers to himself as "Wonderdad" and noted that having a daughter changed his calculus on risking further damage in the cage. The former title challenger did not rule out a comeback years down the road once his child is older.

Thompson's UFC tenure began with a first-round head kick finish of Dan Stittgen at UFC 143. The kickboxing specialist twice challenged Tyron Woodley for the belt, battling to a majority draw at UFC 205 before dropping the rematch by decision at UFC 209. His resume includes victories over Jorge Masvidal, Johny Hendricks, and Kevin Holland, though he enters the Radtke fight having lost five of his past six.

🎟️ Get tickets: Buy tickets to UFC 334 on Ticketmaster →

Thompson competes on a card headlined by the Ciryl Gane versus Josh Hokit heavyweight title fight, with the Kayla Harrison-Amanda Nunes bout serving as co-main. The event takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Reported via:

• BJPenn — Stephen Thompson announces retirement after UFC 334 fight at Madison Square Garden