Veteran fighter Stephen Thompson is slated to make his return to the octagon this summer at the UFC Nashville event.
According to a Friday announcement from the promotion, the Fight Night card, which is set to be headlined by heavyweight Derrick Lewis facing the undefeated Tallison Teixeira, will also feature the comeback of former title challenger Thompson, who will take on Gabriel Bonfim.
“Wonderboy,” who holds a professional record of 17-8-1 overall and 12-8-1 specifically within the octagon, will be looking to end a two-fight skid. His recent losses came against Shavkat Rakhmonov and Joaquin Buckley before this upcoming bout against the promising Brazilian fighter.
Thompson`s last win in the UFC occurred in December 2022 when he secured a stoppage victory over Kevin Holland. After an impressive start to his UFC career with eight wins in his first nine contests, leading to a championship challenge in 2016, “Wonderboy” has since compiled a record of just four wins across his subsequent twelve fights.
Bonfim, who is fourteen years younger than Thompson, has been successful in four out of his five appearances under the UFC banner. He recently rebounded from an unexpected loss to Nicolas Dalby in 2023 with back-to-back wins over Ange Loosa and Khaos Williams.
Known as “Marretinha” and a former LFA welterweight champion, Bonfim has a history of finishing his opponents early. He secured first-round submission victories in his initial three octagon bouts, starting with a Von Flue choke on Dana White`s Contender Series, followed by consecutive guillotine choke finishes against Mounir Lazzez and Trevin Giles once he reached the UFC.
