JustADude

Just a dude, playing a dude, disguised as another dude. Specializing in shit takes on all things MMA.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

Every all of this. WB is an amazing example of a Martial Artist. Thanks for giving us some great scraps to look back on. #MMATwitter

[JK47 @JKFortySeven]

Wonderboy is retiring this Saturday. One of the few genuinely nice guys in the game. But he didn’t earn the nickname by being nice to anyone.

He was 15, fighting a man in his mid-20s with a perfect record and a couple titles. Thompson beat him so thoroughly that afterward the guy wondered why he’d even stepped in the ring with that boy. That was the start of the superhero origin story.

The name has followed him for nearly 30 years, all the way to Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, where he walks in one last time.

He was three when his father put him on the mat at Upstate Karate in Simpsonville, South Carolina. Five kids, and all of them trained. It was never just kicking and punching. It was building character and family bonds.

Wonderboy was raised to be more than a fighter, he's a role model.

Too many fighters want to look tough and badass. Thompson doesn’t have to try. He simply is - and he’s nice on top of it. They call him the NMF "Nicest Mother Fucker" in the UFC for a reason. It was never debated.

Even with that reputation, the toughness was never in question. He went 37-0 as an amateur kickboxer with 16 titles. Never lost as a pro. In the UFC, with hands low and feet wide, he knocked out Robert Whittaker and Johny Hendricks. He outclassed Rory MacDonald, Jorge Masvidal, and Vicente Luque. At 42 he went three full rounds with Gabriel Bonfim and a lot of people thought he won. He’s still that sharp.

He’s always been a fan favorite. At UFC 205 in the same building, Tyron Woodley locked up a guillotine in the fourth. When Thompson’s head popped free, the crowd erupted. Woodley never got the finish.

Through all of it, he always gave back. He never stopped teaching the kids classes back home, he has over 600 students. So for his last fight he picked Charles Radtke on purpose. Thompson says he wouldn't have made it to the top 5 if it wasn't for other guys giving him a chance. So now in his last fight he is giving an up coming name an opportunity.

He’s giving back to the sport that gave to him. Even on the last night, when it should be all about him, he’s thinking of someone else.

Wonderboy has said his body still feels good and he could keep going, but he has a new baby girl. The "WonderDad" era has begun.

I’ve never gotten to speak to Wonderboy, but I did cross his path once.

Kansas City. Weigh-ins for Garry vs. Prates. I was early in line, maybe the sixth person in the building. Stephen was standing with two other UFC media members in front of a UFC backdrop, mic in hand, waiting for the camera to start.

I knew I shouldn’t walk up on them with a camera pointed their way. But I couldn’t help but smile, point, and raise my hand in a small wave.

By the luck from God - or maybe someone behind me - he looked at me, smiled, and gave a head nod.

It meant so much. I couldn’t stop smiling.

The original Wonder Boy was a comic-book hero with the strength of a thousand men and a taste for bombastic speeches.

The real Wonderboy is 43 now. He never needed the speeches.

He let his superpowers do the talking in the cage.

Heroes don't retire. They just become legends. Saturday, Wonderboy solidifies his status.

Thank you Wonderboy.

Story Details via James Lynch - Ariel Helwani - UFC
#UFC334

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@Helpyourself99 @sandipantswtf Haaaaaaaa…

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@briannafrost I🖤The Big Lebowski.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@Helpyourself99 I’d hit the links with you in this rig. Hord.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@Helpyourself99

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@briannafrost @whiteyX When you consider the health of both your baby AND yourself, it becomes difficult to put a price tag on.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@4XAETERNA Look at that boy glisten!

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@StillSumAsshole @McGregorRousey2 How tf do I miss this type of S-word💩?!

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@burgerbread1 Tell him the internet said great job, and to keep killing it.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@briannafrost There were a few she used to like. Some were actually quite interesting.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@briannafrost My ex used to watch all those pregnant lady shows on TLC, so I know more about y’all’s baby system than I ever cared to.😂

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@sapphirecyan333 They were on to something then, aye?

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@pattyfuegoV2

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@SPEsteemed Or dumb. Either will work.

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@burgerbread1 All the single ladies…🤭

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@Helpyourself99 @charmingkitten4

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@Shawnravenous YW…🤘🏼😠

[Shawn O'Dou @Shawnravenous]

We’re almost to 1000 streams on Spotify!! Every listen helps,
Thank you all so much!!!
#shaelyodoumusic #NewMusic2026

https://t.co/W5nZz1nPuy

[JustADude @BeardsAndInk]

@IronMikey85 He’s done the math and knows that the Max fight gives him the best chance of being able to go out with a W. Almost every other possible opponent is almost a guaranteed L.🤷‍♀️