Tony Ferguson was considered one of the top lightweights in the sport for most of his time spent in the UFC, but his exit from the promotion came after a record-setting eight straight losses.<\/p>\n
That was a far cry from the fan-favorite fighter, who was repeatedly matched up with Khabib Nurmagomedov only for the bout to get cancelled or delayed for one reason or another. It was one of those cancellations that led to Ferguson falling to Justin Gaethje in an interim lightweight title fight that started his downhill trajectory, which ended with a loss to Michael Chiesa in what ultimately served as his final appearance in the UFC.<\/p>\n
While he\u2019s not looking back at that losing streak through rose-colored glasses, Ferguson can honestly say he wasn\u2019t truly himself in many of those performances.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m fighting these guys, like a bunch of puds, they weren\u2019t around for the longest f*cking time on my tear,\u201d Ferguson told MMA Fighting. \u201cBecause they didn\u2019t want to f*cking get bloody or have me wear their blood while I\u2019m smiling and shit like that.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was fighting these guys, it\u2019s kind of like I was doing it for the fan base and to be like, yeah, I\u2019m taking these opportunities, I\u2019m not going to let them ice the kicker. I\u2019m going to take these opportunities. I didn\u2019t get cut from the UFC. We both [shook hands] and we both walked away.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ferguson admits he got most excited about a potential coaching opportunity on The Ultimate Fighter when he was pushing for a showdown against Nurmagomedov on the reality show.<\/p>\n
Once that didn\u2019t happen, the now 41-year-old fighter just wasn\u2019t all that enthusiastic about the matchups available to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to get Khabib [Nurmagomedov]. I said to my wife, we\u2019re going to take these fights, and what we\u2019re going to do is put some film out there so that way Khabib takes the bait,\u201d Ferguson explained. \u201cHe\u2019s going to want to take the bait. That was when Conor McNuggets [McGregor] and [Michael] Chandler ended up coaching against each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I put that feeler out there for me and Khabib to go and coach on The Ultimate Fighter. We had signed agreements with the UFC, we had signed with Ali [Abdelaziz] and everybody else, and that was the time he didn\u2019t go and corner his cousin. So he had a lot of extra shit that was going on. Other than that, the interest has never been there.\u201d<\/p>\n
After leaving the UFC, Ferguson signed a deal to join the roster at the now-defunct Global Fight League, where he got matched up with grappling champion and noted trash talker Dillon Danis. The ink on those contracts barely dried before GFL cancelled its first two events, and the company has essentially disappeared since then.<\/p>\n
While there were other options out there, Ferguson ended up signing a deal to go to Misfits Boxing, where he\u2019s set to face influencer pugilist Salt Papi on Aug. 30.<\/p>\n
Funny enough, on that same card, Danis is finally making his return to action as well in the first MMA fight sanctioned by Misfits. Ferguson isn\u2019t opposed to eventually rebooking that fight against Danis, but right now his sights are much more set on boxing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen it goes into MMA, the chances present itself, and it does interest me, because I don\u2019t have to do it,\u201d Ferguson said. \u201cI don\u2019t have to do it. We walked away, handshakes, and if that presents itself and it makes sense, yeah, we\u2019re going to do it. But right now the focus is boxing. After that, if I want to grapple, yeah. Arman Tsarukyan, when we were over and I was doing the Real Fights [reality series], I was over there in Thailand, and I don\u2019t know if you got to see it, people were trying to take me down. One person tried to take me down, and it wasn\u2019t on film. I went to go get a Coca-Cola off the mat, and this guy tried to take me down; I accidentally snapped his arm. He got an underhook, and I snapped his arm. Pulled him in and I threw him in an uchi mata, landed on him, and I walked away, and I went and I hosted a match. It was fast. I did it really quick.<\/p>\n
\u201cMMA was one of those ways for me to be able to demonstrate and hone all my talents into one thing. This is another opportunity for me to express myself. If the chances present itself, when I was out there, Arman was like \u2018Let\u2019s grapple.\u2019 I was like, \u2018You don\u2019t want to grapple me.\u2019 He\u2019s like \u2018Why?\u2019 Because I\u2019ll take your ranking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, Ferguson has heard all the cries that he\u2019s past his prime, washed up, and nowhere near the same fighter he was a few years ago.<\/p>\n
As much as he claims that doesn\u2019t bother him, Ferguson is also fired up to go back out there and show what he\u2019s still capable of doing. Boxing is offering him a fresh start, but that doesn\u2019t mean he\u2019s done with MMA either.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t give a f*ck what anybody thinks about me,\u201d Ferguson said. \u201c\u2018[Is] Tony Ferguson in his prime?\u2019 I don\u2019t give a f*ck. The interest is there right now. It doesn\u2019t matter who the f*ck is going to step in front of me. You could put anybody in front of me come that night. I\u2019m going to go in there and give the best possible version of myself that I possibly can because I\u2019m uncomfortable in practice right now. The last four to five years, I\u2019ve been comfortable in practice. I\u2019ve been miserable in the fight because I just didn\u2019t want to f*cking do it. I\u2019m uncomfortable in practice right now, getting rounds and making myself feel that way so that way when I get inside that ring, I\u2019m going to be comfortable as f*ck.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf it interests me, I\u2019m going to go in there, and I\u2019m going to do it. I\u2019m that kind of guy that has that kind of talent to be able to pick it up because that\u2019s the way my parents raised me. If I\u2019m going to pick up and do something, you better do it to the f*cking best that you could.\u201d<\/p>\n