Thompson: “I’m looking to knock Blake out in his home town”

In the run-up to a crucial career bout at GLORY 18, light-heavyweight Warren Thompson (9-3-1, 2 KO’s) has been doing things a bit differently.

Thompson, a Georgia native who appeared on season eleven of the MMA reality show ‘The Ultimate Fighter’, is a friend and training partner of Brian Stann, one-time UFC middleweight contender turned television pundit.

Stann is now retired but when he and Thompson used to train together he had expressed concerns about Thompson’s workload and the strain he was putting his body under by often undertaking three training sessions in a single day.

“I’ve actually wound down on my training because I was overtraining and getting injuries all the time. So I took a step back and started to train one quality training session per day and then maybe if I feel like doing one more that day I will do a light technical session,” says Thompson.

“Really it was on the advice of my buddy Brian; He was like ‘man, you really don’t train very smart, you are overdoing it and you are going to injure yourself.’ And he was right! So this camp I have wound it down, quality not quantity, and I feel great.”

Thompson faces Oklahoma man Randy ’Boom Boom’ Blake (34-4, 15 KO’s) on the ‘Superfight Series’ section of the GLORY 18 card. It’s an All-American match-up but don’t expect a friendly encounter: Thompson and Blake are both riding losses and the fight could well result in the loser leaving the GLORY roster.

“He moves really well, he’s athletic. I think he used to be a basketball player I think?  I think he’s bigger and more athletic than me so on paper he looks like the winner, right? Well all that jumping and running around is good for an athlete but it doesn’t mean you’re going to win a fight,” says Thompson.

“He’s got a couple of losses in GLORY but it’s to respectable opposition so it doesn’t reflect badly on him. But he needs a win to stay on the GLORY roster and I am looking for a win for the same reason.”

Thompson comes from a Muay Thai background. While the sport shares similarities with kickboxing there are crucial differences.

Elbow strikes and clinching are not allowed in kickboxing and the fights generally go at a much faster pace, whereas in Muay Thai it is customary for the first round to be ‘thrown away’ in a very light and cautious feeling-out process from both sides.

“The main difference is the fast pace from the start. I always used to be a slow starter, I would feel my way through the first round and then get going. There’s no time for that in GLORY,” says Thompson.

“Everyone thinks they could just get in there and go after it but it’s not that easy. You don’t know the guy’s timing and the guy’s movement so to get in there and get to banging without getting knocked out, it’s a difficult thing to do.

“The learning curve with kickboxing has been tricky because I come from Muay Thai. I am used to being able to do the clinch and the elbows… there are thousands of good Muay Thai fighters around the world who wouldn’t be able to fit in with GLORY.”

Thompson’s main coach is the French national Manu N’Toh, a multi-time champion in Muay Thai who has been based in Georgia for several years now and counts Stann among his former students. Thompson has also developed a relationship with iconic Amsterdam team Meijiro Gym, which is helping him transition into a kickboxing mindset.

“Johan de Leeuw is from Andre Mannaart’s gym [Meijiro, Amsterdam]. I’m training with those guys and sparring their students,” he says.

“I met Andre and Johann last year and they have both helped me out, their insight has really helped me a lot as I learn the sport. There are a lot more differences than you would think.”

As an example, Thompson highlights the sport’s different requirements when it comes to tactical approach. Muay Thai fights can often involve a lot of one-for-one kick exchanges and a lot of feints and probing for openings to score a point. Stalemates are not uncommon.

“I’m good at defending the low kick without shin-checking at all. I can push-kick and block the hips without damaging my legs. Johann has prevented me from doing a lot of that. He calls it ‘fluffing’ - he says he wants to see action and pressure,” says Thompson.

“So in Muay Thai, say if my opponent was a powerful kicker, I would use my push-kick to shut him down for a round or two and then go after him. In GLORY you don’t have time for that, you have to go after the guy right away.”

On Friday November 7, Thompson will be doing exactly that. Blake’s status as the hometown hero won’t do anything to alter the approach Thompson has in mind.

“This is Randy’s home town and I am coming in there to kick his door open, punch him in the mouth and see what happens,” he says.

“No offense to him but I’m going in there to win, I’m looking to knock him out and I’m sure he is looking to do the same to me.”