UFC’s Stephen Thompson hoping for headlining bout with Robbie Lawler

Former UFC welterweight title challenger Stephen Thompson is looking to rebound from his loss to Darren Till in a headlining bout with Robbie Lawler, according to a recent interview with MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn.

Thompson, 35, is hoping to get the fight booked in his home state of South Carolina and claims that UFC president Dana White is ‘excited’ about hosting an event there.

“We chatted back and forth, and I think that’s something they’re definitely excited about and looking forward to. Hopefully we can get something going by the end of the year. If not that, the beginning of next year,” Thompson said.

“We have an awesome venue here. “It seats a hundred more than the (MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas). I did my very first MMA fight at the arena, and we packed it out. I know we can. That’s something we’re just trying to work on. We want some more fights down south. It’s something we’re talking about with Dana White, and we want to make that happen. If not, it would be cool to fight again in Madison Square Garden.”

Thompson, a top-five ranked welterweight contender, picked up an MCL tear in his loss to ‘The Gorilla’ at UFC Liverpool and is expected to be fully recovered in four weeks. Lawler is also nursing a knee injury suffered from his bout with Rafael dos Anjos at UFC on FOX 26. ‘Ruthless’ lost the bout via unanimous decision and is hoping to spring back into the winner’s column.

“With Robbie Lawler, he’s coming off of a knee injury,” Thompson said. “I was just thinking, ‘Robbie Lawler’s out for a little bit. I might be out for a little bit. Let’s call for Robbie Lawler and maybe the timing will be fairly right.’

“Hopefully we can fight each other.”

Despite losing two of their last three bouts, Thompson and Lawler are still ranked amongst the divisional elite and would surely qualify for a headlining spot on a Fight Night card.