It might not seem like it, but Bellator MMA indeed has a plan for veteran lightweight Josh Thomson. That plan includes his upcoming fight against a virtually unknown opponent.
Thomson (21-8) is scheduled to headline Bellator 147 Friday at San Jose State University, against 28-year-old Chilean Pablo Villaseca (10-1). It will mark Thomson's second appearance in the Bellator cage after a four-fight run with the UFC -- and many were puzzled when Bellator announced the 155-pound matchup.
A former Strikeforce champion and one of the top lightweights of the past decade, Thomson, 37, has openly talked about coming to the end of his career. Villaseca, meanwhile, has just one fight in Bellator, which he lost, and essentially zero name recognition. Patricky Freire, a far more accomplished lightweight who is also scheduled to fight on Friday's card, has admitted he's perplexed as to why he's not fighting Thomson instead of Villaseca.
According to Thomson, it's all part of a bigger plan to build interest in future fights against former Bellator champion Michael Chandler and current titleholder Will Brooks. Apparently, Bellator wishes to establish a strong connection between its brand and Thomson before booking him to bigger fights.
"[Bellator president] Scott Coker and I have plans for this whole thing," Thomson told ESPN.com. "You have to understand, the fans who watch Bellator might not watch the other promotions. Not everyone tunes in to watch the UFC. Bellator has its own following, just like Strikeforce had its own following. For me, it's about getting my name recognized with the Bellator fans, making sure everyone is on the same track. I don't want the organization to just shove me down people's throats and expect them to tune in."
While that makes sense in theory, Thomson arguably has a bigger presence on social media than Brooks and Chandler combined. He headlined a UFC event on network television less than two years ago. Brooks, Bellator's champion, has called him out. Isn't it safe to say Thomson needs no introduction?
"You can't just put me in a fight with Chandler because Bellator fans who know Chandler will say, 'Chandler is going to walk through this guy,'" Thomson said. "Maybe that's far-fetched. You guys in the media will say that's far-fetched but not every fan sits at home and watches every organization. There are probably fans of Bellator who don't watch the UFC and aren't familiar with who I am. I have to have impressive showings first, so people will want to tune into a fight between me and Chandler."
If all goes well Friday, Thomson said he's asking to fight again later this month on Japanese promotion RIZIN's planned New Year's Eve event in Tokyo. The event will feature the return of Russian heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko and air on Spike TV, Bellator's broadcast partner, in the U.S.
After going 12 months between fights in the UFC (from July 2014 to July 2015), Thomson is looking to stay as active as possible with Bellator. In addition to possibly fighting twice this month, he's also eyeing a scheduled event on Jan. 29 in Fresno, California.
"When I was with the UFC I couldn't stay busy," Thomson said. "I was asking for fights, this guy and that guy, and I couldn't get those fights. Especially when I was on the last fight of my contract, it was almost a year before I was able to get one. I want to stay busy. It's easier to stay motivated when you're training all the time for something. Physically, I feel good. I want to get through this fight, try to get on the New Year's card, and then if it's possible, either that Fresno show or the [Ken] Shamrock-Royce [Gracie] card [on Feb. 19]."
Looking ahead, Thomson admits there is probably nothing he could do with Bellator that would ever top his trilogy with Gilbert Melendez, which took place from 2008 to 2012. Melendez went 2-1 in that series. All three fights were extremely competitive and for the Strikeforce lightweight title.
That said, the San Jose, California, native has several potentially interesting fights under the Bellator banner. His "introduction" to Bellator fans, which began with a win against Mike Bronzoulis in September, continues Friday.
"Honestly, I feel like nothing I do in my career will ever stack up to the trilogy with Gil," Thomson said. "We've knocked a couple [of] years off each other's lives and I think over time, you just have respect for that person. You realize everyone has their one foe and he happened to be mine. As far as me having the best year of my career in 2016, fighting guys like Chandler and Brooks, you never know. So much would need to happen. Right now, I'm not trying to look that far ahead."