Thompson erases doubts of contender status with vintage win
Stephen Thompson beat Geoff Neal via unanimous decision in the main event of Saturday's UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas.
Here are four takeaways from the event.
'Wonderboy' far from a gatekeeper
Thompson made one thing clear by dominating another up-and-coming welterweight: He's not going anywhere.
Naturally, with the former title challenger approaching his 38th birthday, Thompson had some doubters heading into Saturday's fight. Some people thought this would be a changing of the guard. At 5-0 in the UFC, Neal looked to be a future champion while Thompson was a mere 2-3 in his last five bouts.
Even Thompson recognized the UFC seemingly viewed him as a gatekeeper and wanted to use his name to boost Neal's stock. But any hope of Neal scoring a breakthrough win quickly diminished, with Thompson dominating "Handz of Steel" from start to finish.
Not only did this victory prove the No. 5-ranked welterweight is far from finished, but it showed he's still one of the best 170-pound fighters on the planet.
This was one of Thompson's best UFC performances to date. "Wonderboy" used his slick punches and kicks to keep Neal off him and avoid his biggest shots. Thompson's unorthodox style puzzled Neal and he was ultimately two steps ahead of his younger foe during the entire fight.
Thompson made it clear before Saturday's main event that he wanted a top-five opponent with a win over Neal. After taking out a pair of rising contenders in back-to-back fights - Vicente Luque and now Neal - he deserves that opportunity. The 37-year-old is obviously still a top-tier welterweight, so there's no need to try to build a rising star off him. Let's get him in a big fight next - maybe a rematch with Jorge Masvidal, as Thompson himself suggested - and see if he has what it takes to dethrone Kamaru Usman and finally capture the 170-pound championship.
Aldo not a title contender
Jose Aldo looked good in his rebound win over Marlon "Chito" Vera in Saturday's co-main event, but let's be serious: He's not a top contender and won't - or at least shouldn't - be challenging for the bantamweight strap again.
The former featherweight champion took an early lead with body shots and leg kicks before taking Vera to the mat in the third round to secure the win. However, I saw nothing that made me think he could contend with the likes of Aljamain Sterling and Cory Sandhagen, the No. 1- and 2-ranked bantamweights. Beating Vera and beating those guys are two very different things.
We've known for a while that Aldo - widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time - has dropped off from his glory days. "Junior" showed he can still win fights by snapping his three-fight skid against Vera, but the Brazilian will never go on another dominant title run like the Aldo of old. Not being completely washed up doesn't mean you're a title contender - don't get that mixed up.
Font takes the next step
Rob Font finally won the big one.
After falling short in key matchups that would've moved him into the group of elite bantamweights earlier in his career, Font got the job done against Marlon Moraes. The 33-year-old violently took out the former title challenger with a series of strikes and ground-and-pound blows in the first round. When the rankings are updated next week, Font is almost guaranteed to find himself in the top five.
After the win, Font expressed interest in clashing with former champion TJ Dillashaw and that's the level of fight he deserves. Even in a stacked weight class featuring Sterling, Sandhagen, and several other top contenders, Font is arguably one win away from a shot at Petr Yan's title.
Font has been considered a bantamweight to watch ever since his UFC debut in 2014, but this fight is where he transitioned from prospect to legitimate contender. The victory is even more impressive since the Massachusetts native has been quite inactive lately, only fighting twice in the past two years before Saturday. But Font ultimately made up for lost time, inserting himself into the bantamweight title picture with a statement win.
Hardy has potential, but his game is limited
Greg Hardy fought arguably the best round of his career in the opening frame against Marcin Tybura.
The former NFL player was slick on the feet, landing crisp shots that hurt Tybura toward the end of the round. A good combination of technique and aggression made it look like Hardy was heading toward his most impressive victory to date.
But in reality, Hardy was en route to getting finished for the first time in his professional career.
Tybura took him down in the second round and Hardy never returned to his feet until the contest was over. "Tybur" controlled him for a while but then started opening up with ground-and-pound shots. "Prince of War" had no answer, covering up and giving the referee no choice but to call off the fight.
The highs and lows of Hardy's latest performance were distinct. On the feet, Hardy looked like a solid heavyweight prospect who continues to make huge leaps forward. But on the ground, the 32-year-old looked like a fish out of water.
This bout was essentially the first time someone got Hardy into that position. Now we know he has some work to do on the ground. Hardy still has a lot of potential and could very well be a top-15 fighter one day, but he needs to turn his limited skillset into a well-rounded one before that can happen. In 2020, you can't have a blatant hole in your game if you want to be an elite fighter. Filling in that gap is going to be Hardy's next challenge.