Stephen Thompson Reveals the Best Kicker in MMA, and It’s Not Israel Adesanya

The UFC has been blessed with multiple elite-level strikers and wrestlers. With each passing year, the crop of superstars just keeps getting better. Stephen Thompson, a legend in his own right, is one of those elite-level strikers.

‘Wonderboy,’ as he is affectionately known, is a Karate specialist and relies on his striking to win fights. However, the 38-year-old doesn’t like himself among the top kickers in the UFC. In a video uploaded on his YouTube channel, Thompson revealed who he thought was the best kicker in the UFC.

Wonderboy named several great fighters like Mirko Cro Cop, Zabit, Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida, Israel Adesanya, and Yair Rodriguez. He admired their kicking and called them the best in the business. “These guys are amazing kickers, but who is the number one,” he asked.

He answered his own question and said, “I think it’s Edson Barboza.” Additionally, Thompson explained why he thought so by giving three major reasons.

Speed is one of the main factors for a good kick. Thompson took note of Barboza’s incredible kicking speed for his hypothesis. “Man, this guy is blistering fast. A guy does this kicks over and over and over again but not just over and over and over again. He does it as fast as he can. Speed is important when it comes to being a good kicker,” he said.

Stephen Thompson believes that Edson Barboza’s kicks are hard to see coming.

Thompson said that the second most impressive part about Barboza’s kicking is his lack of a telegraph. A telegraph is any involuntary or voluntary movement of the body which tells your opponent that you’re going to throw the particular kick.

“Edson Barboza’s kicks are hard to see coming because he has very little to no telegraph in those kicks. You don’t know when it’s coming,” Thompson exclaimed. “His leg kicks are blistering fast, no telegraph.”

He admired Barboza a lot and added that because of Barboza’s kicking style; he didn’t need to set his kicks up to fool his opponent. “The guy’s a kicking maniac. One of my all-time favorite fighters and the best kicker in MMA,” he concluded.

Do you agree with Wonderboy? Do you think Edson Barboza is the best kicker in MMA?

Read More: 5 Things We Didn’t Know About Israel Adesanya.