Stephen Thompson issues statement following UFC 264 loss to Gilbert Burns

UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson issued a statement following his unanimous decision loss at UFC 264 to Gilbert Burns.

Thompson was expected to be in contention to get a title shot against UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman with a win over Burns at UFC 264, but the fight did not go his way at all. Despite Thompson having statistically some of the best takedown defense in the UFC welterweight division, Burns was still able to get him down to the ground in all three rounds and control him as he was able to pull off a small upset with a decision victory.

This was a very tough loss for Thompson, who had entered the fight against Burns with title aspirations after he defeated Vicente Luque and Geoff Neal in his last two outings. Unfortunately for Thompson, he had a poor showing and ended up losing on the judges’ scorecards. Taking to his social media following the fight, Thompson reacted to the loss.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRMokiiD3SG/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

“Welp… didn’t go the way I wanted it too but I’ll be back better then EVER next time y’all see me in the octagon! Thanks soo much @gilbert_burns for the opportunity Brotha!! Aaaand the face punching had me dying 🤣 thanks to everyone for there love and support!! LETS GOOOOOO! #IllBeBack”

Now 38 years of age, it’s hard to say what will be next for Thompson after suffering this loss to Burns. Had he won the fight, Thompson could have been next in line for a title shot, or just one win away at most. But now, at age 38 and in a stacked division with a number of high-level wrestlers at the top of the weight class, it seems very unlikely that Thompson will be able to make another run for the title given how one-sided this fight against Burns was. For Thompson, it was a fight that he really needed to win if he was going to have any chance of fighting for the belt, but after losing in lackluster fashion, that won’t happen now.

What do you think is next for Stephen Thompson after losing to Gilbert Burns at UFC 264?