BREAKING | Tony Ferguson Forced to Push Back His UFC Return

While some insane fights have happened and are still slated for UFC’s shark tank lightweight division, Tony Ferguson has been hanging back after beating Kevin Lee for the interim lightweight championship. With threats looming in the distance, all of our fingers crossed that we’d see Ferguson back in action soon, maybe against Khabib Nurmagomedov if not Conor McGregor. However, it looks like we’ll have to wait. First reported by Amy Kaplan over at Fansided, Tony Ferguson underwent elbow surgery and a date for his return is delayed indefinitely.

“In good spirits even after elbow surgery. Praying for a speedy recovery, baby. We love you daddy.” — Tony Ferguson’s wife, Cristina Ferguson, on her private Instagram account.  

While Tony Ferguson hasn’t let out a peep about any injury or surgery, wife Cristina Ferguson posted a post-surgery picture on her private Instagram account and wished her husband a speedy recovery. Brandishing a UFC cap, Ferguson looked in high spirits despite his elbow wrapped up like a mummy. No word on what type of surgery it was or how serious, but this definitely puts Ferguson out for a bit.

Tony Ferguson’s forced absence from the Octagon due to injury isn’t so bad though, once you sit down and think about the lightweight division. Khabib Nurmagomedov still has to fight Edson Barboza at UFC 219, and Eddie Alvarez just put himself right back into the title picture with his brutal win over Justin Gaethje. Meanwhile, the undisputed champion Conor McGregor is gallivanting around Ireland as Ferguson waits on his opportunity to possibly unify his interim lightweight title with the Champ Champ. So, there’s a lot of things to work out while Ferguson sits on the sidelines. Either way, we hope Ferguson recovers quickly, even if he may still just be waiting to see what McGregor decides he wants to do next.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 12/7/2017.