Thompson retires on his own terms, landing the spinning kick he predicted at UFC 334

Stephen Thompson retired from MMA exactly as he had envisioned it, stopping Charles Radtke with a spinning wheel kick in the third round at UFC 334 on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The 43-year-old former UFC welterweight title challenger had told people close to him before the fight that a spinning kick would be the decisive blow. When it landed, he was vindicated. “I called it, I knew it. You know, we do a lot of fight study for a reason,” Thompson said in his post-fight interview. “I told her it was going to be a spin hook kick, and of course it happened. Couldn’t ask for anything freaking better.”

The setting carried its own symmetry. Thompson fought at Madison Square Garden for the first time ten years ago, and he chose the same venue to walk away — this time soaking in the crowd noise on what he knew would be his final Octagon entrance. “This means the world to me,” he said. “But to be able to go like that for my fans — I mean, I don’t know if you heard the crowd out there. I was trying to soak up as much as I could walking out to that cage.”

Known throughout his career as “Wonderboy” for his karate-based striking style, Thompson spent years as one of the welterweight division’s most technically distinctive fighters, twice challenging for the UFC title. Finishing his final contest with one of the most difficult techniques in the sport was, for him, the only fitting conclusion.

In retirement, Thompson says he intends to stay close to the sport in several capacities. He plans to continue teaching martial arts at his school and remain involved with the UFC through broadcasting and podcasting. “Still being a part of the UFC, even though I’m not getting kicked and punched in the face anymore — which is going to be a lot better,” he said, adding that spending time with his daughter and family is his immediate priority.