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By Loretta Hunt
"It's not so much disappointment," says Thomson of the absence of a championship opportunity. "It's more frustrated," he let's out with a wholehearted sigh, pointing out that others that have won twice in the Octagon are now going on to fight for the gold in their third appearances with the promotion. Like countless hopefuls before him, a UFC title has been in Thomson's sights for quite some time. Since taking up fighting in 1998 with some friends while wrestling at Idaho State College, Thomson rose through the ranks with his innate athleticism and aggressive "go anywhere" style both standing and on the mats. With notable performances against SHOOTO and K-1 staple "Kid" Yamamoto and most recently versus American Top Team's Hermes Franca at UFC 46, Thomson has amassed an impressive 25-1-1 record in mixed martial arts, establishing himself as one of the more multi-talented candidates the division has to offer. 2-0 in the UFC, a shot at the title seems hardly far fetched for the one dubbed "the Punk" for his wild antics outside the cage. But, with the undefeated former champion Jens Pulver's departure from the promotion more than two years ago, along with a painstaking and very time consuming 4-man tournament that yielded no heir to the throne, the UFC has considerably cooled their efforts to fill the void. Averaging five to six live events a year, the UFC says there are only so many fights they can make happen, and consolidation has become the key. The UFC welterweight division has already benefited greatly with a flourish of incoming talent, as the lightweights have taken second seat. The 155-pound division will be absent when the UFC's reality television show The Ultimate Fighter debuts in January, while the weight class has been heavily assigned to the preliminary slots at live events, greatly decreasing its chances of being seen by the pay-per-view audience. Thomson's Saturday night rendezvous with Edwards is scheduled as the first bout of the night, which means they may or may not make it to the broadcast depending on time and outcome. A victory will surely give some mighty bragging rights around the gym, but not the shiny hardware this personable fighter craves. How is Thomson staying motivated? "Motivation is lack there of, but it doesn't really matter," Thomson admitted a month ago, before pausing briefly to collect his thoughts. Of late, Thomson has found his motivation in his opponent, turning his efforts on the striking machine that will stand across him in just a couple of days. "His stand-up, everyone thinks, is a little bit better than mine, and I could care less what everybody thinks," he says of his lanky opponent's forte. "And I know my wrestling's way better and I know my submissions are way better and I know I'm probably a little bit bigger and a little bit stronger." Training with Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Dave Camarillo among others at San Jose's American Kickboxing Academy, Thomson has the tools to take it to the ground, but true to his fiery personality, he'll not shy away from the challenge. "I'm gonna fight him on the feet like I told everybody and if I get in trouble, I'll take him down," he says matter-of-factly. That's the one thing I got going for me. If he gets in trouble, there's nothing he can do except take the ass whippin' I'm gonna give to him." The Thomson-Edwards tango was meant to happen at UFC 47, but like his many anticipated debuts in the UFC (Thomson was slotted on three separate occasions before officially taking the walk), injury detoured the Punk from taking the ultimate dive. "I broke my thumb in the back warming up," Thomson says with a laugh of his last injury before going out to meet Franca. "I hit on fuckin' Dave Camarillo's head. Jammed it and fractured it all the way down." Even with his hand issues, Thomson pulled out the controversial win, but when he couldn't meet Edwards at the next event, Franca jumped into the slot. With both knocking Franca out of contention, their paths are now set to cross, and in what fans are anticipating as a tense, fast-paced affair, Thomson and Edwards could make that live broadcast yet. "I think what's really motivating me is the resigning of a new contract," Thomson concludes, "perhaps with the UFC, and maybe a little more money, and we'll see from there." Staying focused despite no apparent finish line, this runner will look to clock in his best time yet for the masses come Saturday. |
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