Stephen Thompson reacts after his victory over Geoff Neal in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on December 19, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Marc Goddard was the referee in the Stephen Thompson vs Geoff Neal main event in the final UFC show of the year
Marc Goddard was part of the Schmozone podcast but in a different avatar as he was interviewed in the hotel.
Goddard is one of the top referees in the world of MMA and has officiated several big fights in his career. He was the referee in the fight between Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson and Geoff Neal.
One of the major talking points of the fight was the camaraderie between Wonderboy and Neal. Wonderboy is considered as one of the nicest MMA athletes of all time and he was more than happy to take care of his rival mid-fight.
This caught the attention of many, including Goddard, and he opened up on why the UFC needs more nice guys like Wonderboy and Neal, to an extent:
“When his [Neal] mouthpiece came off and him [Thompson] almost giving him a break. I come in and say pick it up and puts it back in.
“Everything about the guy is class, both of them. You almost see things like when he lands a good shot, he is like ‘are you OK?’, he is almost checking in on him.
“It’s refreshing and the sport needs people like that.”
Thompson picked up a bit of a knee injury in the win over Neal but Wonderboy was at his best and claimed he was looking to win the belt.
He hasn’t won the title in the UFC but has come close in the past. Wonderboy also called out the BMF champion, Jorge Masvidal, despite having a win over him.
It will be interesting to see what is next for Masvidal given that he last fought for the title but lost. Masvidal has also hinted that he had some unfinished business in 2021 and that could mean a rematch against the ‘Nicest Mother F*****’ next year.
This was an exclusive interview from The Schmozone Podcast. For more exclusive interviews and content please follow the link.
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