Things have not been going well for UFC welterweight veteran Stephen Thompson, who racked up a third loss in a row over a week ago against Gabriel Bonfim. While the split decision loss was a bit controversial, what was worse for ‘Wonderboy’ was that he suffered an injury during the fight. Recently, Thompson shared an update on the injury, and some bad news to go with it as well.

Immediately after his last fight, Stephen Thompson offered his first update on the injury, which happened in his shin. Apparently, the veteran was going for a head kick, but it was checked by Gabriel Bonfim, leading his left shin to split open. The UFC veteran’s injury almost resembled that of Conor McGregor, but in the Irishman’s case, he broke the tibia in his left leg, which happened in his last fight against Dustin Poirier.

Despite that, Stephen Thompson seemed positive about healing soon, saying, “Well, got to get back, heal my shin up, maybe do some more shin conditioning,” in a video on social media. However, the injury is worse than he thought. ‘Wonderboy’ recently shared the before and after images of the nasty gash, which seemed stitched up and dried up.

However, the veteran claimed that, at 43 years old, he doesn’t think that his healing process will be fast. This led to some bad news for the fans of Stephen Thomson, as he claims that expecting him to return to action in 2025 once again could be a stretch. “Looks gnarly but heeling up nice! Foot is feeling good too,” Stephen Thomson wrote on his Instagram post. “Idk, y’all might see me back in there before the end of the year. I ain’t gettin any younger.”

Well, a 3-fight losing streak and an injury that could end his 2025 season may not have been on Stephen Thomson’s wish list for this year. So, what is next for the UFC veteran? Well, Dana White spoke about ‘Wonderboy’s’ future after his loss to Gabriel Bonfim, so let’s hear what he had to say.

Dana White comments on UFC veteran’s future in the promotion

Dana White may play hardball with his fighters, but if there’s one thing he knows well, that is to stop letting fighters compete who are way past their prime. He was vocal about Tony Ferguson amid his 8-fight losing skid towards the end of his run in the promotion, wanting ‘El Cucuy’ to consider retirement. However, White doesn’t share the same views when it comes to Stephen Thompson. Despite the veteran being 43 years old, the UFC CEO thought he had a great showing against Gabriel Bonfim.

As such, Dana White has given Stephen Thompson the freedom to choose if he wants to keep competing at the top level or wrap up his career. “I don’t know – that’s up to him,” the UFC CEO said during a recent presser. “Yeah, [I would like to see him continue fighting]. He looked great tonight. ‘Wonderboy’ looked great tonight. For a guy who is a traditional martial artist, kickboxer, does a damn good job staying off the ground and defending the takedown and staying out of submissions. He’s one of the nicest human beings on the planet.”

Well, Dana White has kept the door open for the UFC veteran, even if he happens to stay sidelined for the rest of the year. It will be interesting to see who Stephen Thompson fights next, but in the meantime, share with us your thoughts on his injury update. Drop your comments below.