"He's just so dominant at what he does" - Stephen Thompson admits he's on the Khamzat Chimaev hype train

Stephen Thompson is scheduled to take on Belal Muhammad at the UFC's year-ending event on December 18.

Ahead of his second fight of the year, 'Wonderboy' weighed in on fellow welterweight Khamzat Chimaev, who has been making headlines, in an interview with MMA Full Mount.

According to Stephen Thompson, Chimaev is certainly skilled and a force to be reckoned with. Thompson also said that he would like to see 'Borz' stay on his feet more instead of going for takedowns.

Asked if he had boarded Khamzat Chimaev's hype train, Thompson said:

"I'm telling you, I'm on the train. I think he is the real deal. He has been throwing dudes, smashing guys, throwing around [Jack] Hermansson, who's known for his grappling... to be able to throw a guy like that around you got to be skilled. So I think he is got it man. I would like to see more of his striking. I would love to see him just be like, 'Hey man, I'm not going to take this guy down, I just wanna strike with this guy.' You know what I mean? But he is so dominant at what he does. So he is a force to be reckoned with."

Catch Stephen Thompson's full interview on MMA Full Mount below:

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What Stephen Thompson expects from Belal Muhammad

Stephen Thompson also revealed what he expects from his upcoming opponent. Although Belal Muhammad is known for his grappling, Thomson expects him to mix it up inside the octagon, unlike his previous opponent Gilbert Burns.

Asked about his expectations from Muhammad, 'Wonderboy' said:

"I mean he is not afraid to put it together. I think he's got some training in with Gilbert Burns. So he may be taking a note out of his book. But do I think he is just gonna hold me down? No. I didn't expect Burns to just hold me there. It wasn't much of a fight, it was just him holding me down pretty much. You know, Belal's not that type fighter. He's gonna mix it up for sure. He's gonna be standing up. He's gonna be shooting in."