No current UFC lightweight needs a win quite like Tony Ferguson does at UFC 296. The fan-favorite fighter has undergone an unexpected six-fight losing streak over the past three years. Now Ferguson finds himself signed to face Paddy Pimblett in a fight to potentially save his UFC career. However make no mistake, Ferguson is here to give an all-time performance to close out another monumental year for the UFC.
The Downfall of Tony Ferguson
When fans heard back in 2020 that Tony Ferguson was set to face Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title it seemed like destiny was finally going to set things straight. Ferguson was going to have his way with Gaethje and set himself up to finally face Khabib Nurmagomedov for the undisputed lightweight title. However that fateful night, Gaethje destroyed Ferguson and became the first person to finish ‘El Cucuy’ and get the snowball rolling.
From that moment, Ferguson picked up back-to-back losses to Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush. Fans looked past these losses as Oliveira went on to win the vacant lightweight title and Dariush built himself up to be a top contender in the division.
The fight against Michael Chandler seemed like it was the one for Ferguson to rebuild himself into the fighter fans grew to adore. Despite a good early start for ‘El Cucuy’ Chandler landed a historic front kick that shut the lights off for Ferguson.
Having been a former Welterweight, Ferguson reinstated a glimmer of hope for fans as he announced his return to the division. After a historic jumble of the card occurred at UFC 279, he faced off against Nate Diaz. Diaz dominated the fight.
Most recently Ferguson lost via submission to Bobby Green at UFC 291.
How Much Is on the Line?
As aforementioned, Ferguson will face one of the UFC’s brightest prospects in Pimblett. The matchup of the declining veteran and the rising prospect. It’s clear that this matchup was made to make or break one of these men.
“I’m not ready to retire,” Ferguson said to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “Getting cut [from the UFC] was never in my thought process, retiring was never in my thought process. The only thing that was in my thought process is ‘What the f–k are you doing? Get your f–king shit into gear. Do what you have to do to train the way you f–king need to train.”
Tony’s Mindset
Being the closest thing to The Boogeyman in real life, you’d assume Ferguson would be stoic and calm as usual, however on the MMA Hour, Ferguson opened up about his mindset going into this monumental fight.
“I really had to open myself up to really look, to see if I still wanted to do this… to be real — I really, I do want to do this. I still want to compete. I’m not ready for boxing. Like, I’m not. I have to kind of let that go. You’re not boxing yet, stop training boxing all the time. There’s more than just throwing hands. Not to prepare MMA — it’s MMA and I used to do that. Like, I used to pick apart my fighters like it was chess. I used to go in there and do all that stuff,” Ferguson told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “So I really had to open myself up to a lot of things, and these are the steps I’m taking. I’m a f****** different person, thank God, and I really want to win. I really want to win. I’m not wishing — I’m making it happen. I really want to win.”
The 39-minute interview gives fans the raw emotions of one the most stoic men ever to grace the Octagon. He understands the magnitude of UFC 296 for his career and is doing everything to ensure this isn’t how his chapter ends.
What do you make of Ferguson’s comments? Let us know in the comments below.
Featured Image Credit to Embed from Getty Images
