Josh Thomson blames different training regimen for lackluster performance

It’s been 15 months since anyone has seen Josh Thomson in a cage.  The oft injured fighter was back on the main card at Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey to face off with the former EliteXC Lightweight Champion, KJ Noons, in a fight that may have title implications for the future.

Thomson and Noons went back and forth for three rounds.  However, the majority of the fight was spent on the mat, to the dismay of the Columbus, Ohio crowd, who booed this fight unmercifully every chance they got.

After 15 minutes, the fight went to the scorecards and “The Punk” came out the victor, by unanimous decision.  The crowd continued to boo.  When Josh got on the mic with Mauro Ranallo, he explained to Mauro and the crowd that he thought his performance was [expletive].

Having been injured several times in training camps due to his ferocious training style and pace, Thomson stated that he didn’t train as hard, or wasn’t pushed as hard in this camp, so as to avoid injury.  He didn’t like the result of that method and swore to the crowd that he would resume his old way of training and if he gets injured he gets injured.

In the post fight press conference, you could tell Thomson was deeply affected by the crowd’s boos and displeasure with his performance.  He stated that he doesn’t like to be booed because that lets him know that he didn’t give the fans what they wanted.  “People don’t pay hard-earned money to watch that, okay.  In this economy, they pay for people to go out there and show their talent,” said Thomson, “I can tell you this, that won’t ever happen again.”

Scott Coker acknowledged that Josh’s next opponent would likely be Lightweight Champ, Gilbert Melendez, but the time and place has not yet been determined.

Tags: Gilbert Melendez, Josh Thomson, KJ Noons, Lightweight, Mixed Martial Arts, MMA, Strikeforce, Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey

Category: Exclusive, Featured, MMA, Strikeforce