Geoff Neal plans to take title of best welterweight striker vs. ‘Wonderboy’ at UFC Fight Night 183

MMA News
Geoff Neal plans to take title of best welterweight striker vs. ‘Wonderboy’ at UFC Fight Night 183

Geoff Neal says he’s ready to prove himself as the top striker in the welterweight division by taking out Stephen Thompson in the UFC Fight Night 183 main event.

Thompson (15-4-1 MMA, 10-4-1 UFC), a two-time UFC title challenger, has a decorated kickboxing background that has propelled him into the conversation of the best standup fighters in the division over the past decade. Neal (13-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) plans to make room for himself in that conversation by taking out “Wonderboy” in the Dec. 19 headliner, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.

“I’m faster than most people think I am, I’m explosive, so I’ll have explosive movements going forward,” Neal told MMA Junkie on Friday. “I’m strong, so he’s probably going to avoid my power more than he did previous opponents. I see him as the best striker, and I really want to fight the best striker in the division so I can take that title and carry it with me to the belt.”

The fight will mark the first main event of Neal’s UFC career. The matchup was originally set as the co-feature bout, but was bumped up when Leon Edwards contracted COVID-19 and couldn’t fight Khamzat Chimaev. It was a welcome changed for Neal less than three weeks out, he said, because he typically prepares for five rounds.

Any concerns about the adjustment could stem from Neal potentially pushing himself too hard. Back in August, Neal went into septic shock due to a blood infection, and by his telling of the situation, “almost died” from the health scare. He spoke to MMA Junkie shortly thereafter the incident, and said he’d recovered.

Four months later, Neal admits he had a misconception of how far away from 100 percent he really was. But after going through a training camp, he said he can say with complete conviction that he’s in peak form.

“I was still messed up then,” Neal said. “I was trying to convince myself that I was good. I didn’t want to dwell on, ‘This is wrong, that’s wrong.’ I wanted to keep my positive thinking going. I wasn’t good back then. … I had congestive heart failure so I was really concerned on going too hard for a long time. I would be in the gym training but I didn’t want overexert myself because I was like, ‘Man, my heart just might (expletive) stop right now.’ I was worried about that, but I’m not worried anymore.”

Neal is currently riding a five-fight winning streak under the UFC banner and has lost just once in his past 12 bouts overall dating back to August 2013. He’s No. 11 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie MMA welterweight rankings, and has a chance to take a big step forward by beating No. 6-ranked Thompson.

Although his performances have been impressive thus far, Neal thinks he’s somewhat restricted himself by not being more outspoken when a microphone is in front of him or when he’s logged into social media.

Neal predicts he’s going to finish Thompson, though, and if that happens the spotlight will shine bright. He intends on capitalizing on the opportunity, and gaining as much traction as possible to close in on a title shot.

“If I beat ‘Wonderboy’ I’m going to get ranked, I’ll be in like the top five at that point, especially if I do it in a dominating way,” Neal said. “After that in the interviews I’m going to have to start talking (expletive) and being more vocal because the reason I don’t have a big following is because I’m not vocal. I don’t post a lot, I don’t say a lot. But after this fight I’m going to start – not running my mouth – but being more vocal and getting people behind me so I can get those fights I want.”

Geoff Neal plans to take title of best welterweight striker vs. ‘Wonderboy’ at UFC Fight Night 183