Who is a better striker at 170 do you think?
I said I don't think he stands clearly as the best striker at 170lbs. I would not call someone wrong if they felt he was though.
Ive seen a few things from Thompson, when he does the 1 2 or 1 2 rear high kick or 1 2 1 2 he tends to square up or shift his legs, he already keeps his hands low and wide so he's susceptible down the middle but when squaring up or crossing your legs like that you're super vulnerable and Woodley timed and exposed it a lot in their fights but Woodley lacks stamina and therefore has always been a low output kinda guy who pot shots and sits back out of range which plays into Thompson keeping him at the end of his kicks and probing punches.
I also saw in Thompson vs Till and to a lesser extent Rory, his activity and effectiveness at range plummets when he doesn't get to command that long almost points karate distance he's best at. He seems uncomfortable and timid under those circumstances, but lucky for him he's fought very few long guys with effective striking.
Lastly I think the Matt Brown fight to this day is telling, Brown fought Thompson with pressure, was dirty in the clinch, understood he needed to take some shots to get his and even dropped Thompson standing to get it to the ground initially if my memory serves me right (it was a while ago).
Thompson killed Hendricks and Ellenberger when they were already quite washed up and his knockout vs Whittaker isn't that impressive, Whittaker was 23 and coming off a loss to court McGee. He did pick apart Masvidal which is significant but Mas sometimes just doesn't show up and outclassing Luque whos a solid striker and in the top 15 shows us even at 36-37 hes still got it.
I'll even say the Pettis fight was telling, while I think Thompson was the better man on the night and just got caught...His defensive footwork when crowded or his headmovement in general is really bad for the level or striker he is...His head doesnt move and it's straight up in the air, his hands are wide apart and low so almost never any kind of guard to block, deflect or pary.
Do I think a guy like Burns, Neal or Lima could give him trouble? Absolutely, Burns has faster hands and if he's willing to get on the inside and bring the fight I think he has a very realistic chance of beating Thompson on the feet or knocking him out. Neal is nasty and has really tight pocket work and powerful kicks too, good enough speed and a lot more power too. Lima...I know he had a piss poor performance vs Mousasi but he matches Thompson range wise and Thompson has a wide stance ripe for leg kicking which means Lima wins the tentative fight and forces Thompson out of his counter striker game plan....Thompsons hittable from there and I don't think he likes being hit, Lima also hits way harder and is more explosive.
Just my 2cents, Im sure theyre garbage.