Tony Ferguson News

Tom Taylor - January 2, 2017

With UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor currently taking a hiatus from competition to father his first child, the lightweight limelight is shining on two men: Dagestan’s Khabib Nurmagomedov, and California’s Tony Ferguson. Under normal circumstances, either man could easily be argued to be deserving of the next shot at the lightweight title. Because the champion is currently out of the picture, however, they’ve shifted their focus to one another. For weeks, it has been rumored that the two streaking lightweights will fight for the division’s interim title sometime in the first quarter of 2017, and they’ve spiced these rumors up with plenty of trash talk on social media.

bjpenndotcom - December 28, 2016

Earlier this month, reports began to surface that Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson would be fighting for the interim UFC lightweight champion. The pair traded barbs on social media, with both men stating that the ball was in the other’s court. Ultimately, Ferguson revealed that he would be holding out for more money from the UFC. Subsequently, talks began to die down as Ferguson’s name was no longer mentioned in talks of an interim lightweight title fight. Instead, reports began to surface that Jose Aldo could be involved in the fight, and so could Nate Diaz. Recently however, UFC President Dana White stated that Nurmagomedov vs. McGregor could very well be the first lightweight title defense in McGregor, with the promotion looking to host the fight in Russia.

Russell Ess - December 26, 2016

Many fans are awaiting the official announcement of Khabib “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov’s next fight in the UFC as the #1 ranked UFC lightweight is so close to getting a shot to fight for the title.

Tom Taylor - December 26, 2016

November was an incredible month for the UFC lightweight division. The most important moment of the month, of course, was Conor McGregor’s title-winning destruction of Eddie Alvarez. That said, the month also included huge wins from top contenders Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov, who defeated top-flight foes in Rafael Dos Anjos and Michael Johnson respectively. Under normal circumstances, McGregor would now have his sights set on a defense against either Ferguson or Nurmagomedov – though it’s difficult to say who of these two talents deserves the opportunity more. Instead, however, the Irish champion is taking a break from competition to start a family with longtime girlfriend Dee Devlin. While McGregor takes this paternity leave, Ferguson, Nurmagomedov, and the lightweight division’s other contenders have been left to squabble amongst themselves while they wait for their absentee champion to return.

bjpenndotcom - December 21, 2016

Lightweight #1 contender Khabib Nurmagomedov is looking to get one last fight in between now and May 27th, when he begins to take time off from training for Ramadan. While after UFC 205 all signs pointed to Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson fighting for the chance to challenge Conor McGregor for the lightweight championship, Nurmagomedov revealed recently that a fight between the pair was not only nearly official, it would be for the interim lightweight title. Unfortunately however, Ferguson revealed on Twitter this week that he plans to hold out for more money.

bjpenndotcom - December 20, 2016

Top ranked UFC lightweight Tony Ferguson possesses arguably one of the most impressive win streaks in the UFC today. With nine straight wins, which include six finishes, and a recent unanimous decision win over former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos, Ferguson is poised for a lightweight title shot. While UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor may have dropped a major hint recently that he could be returning to the Octagon much sooner than UFC President Dana White expected, there has been no official word on when the ‘champ champ’ will return to the cage. With that being said, Ferguson and lightweight #1 contender Khabib Nurmagomedov have continued to trade barbs on social media. While both men maintain that the ball is in the other’s court, Ferguson has now taken to social media to reveal that he plans to hold out on to get a better contract from the UFC.

bjpenndotcom - December 16, 2016

While top ranked lightweight contenders Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson have continued to trade verbal blows via social media, there have been no updates regarding the negotiations for the pair to fight. Earlier this week, Nurmagomedov took to social media to reveal that he had already accepted his next fight, but was simply waiting on his opponent, who remained nameless, to sign the agreement. That was followed up by a social media post from Ferguson, who took to Twitter with a message of his own for Nurmagomedov, in which he stated that he agreed to the fight, however the UFC and Nurmagomedov needed to agree on terms for the fight.

bjpenndotcom - December 14, 2016

Top ranked UFC lightweights Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson have fought the best of the best in the UFC’s lightweight division, but have never fought one another. When the pair were set to square off earlier this year in Nurmagomedov’s highly anticipated Octagon debut, Ferguson was forced out of the fight with an injury, and was replaced by Darrell Horcher on short notice. Nurmagomedov won the fight in dominant fashion, earning himself a second round TKO win. Following that, Ferguson returned from his injury and picked up a unanimous decision win over former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos to cement his place at the top of the UFC’s lightweight division. Most recently, Nurmagomedov picked up a dominant submission win over Michael Johnson at UFC 205, to cement his place as the lightweight #1 contender.

Tom Taylor - December 13, 2016

With lightweight champion Conor McGregor currently on a hiatus from competition, during which he will father his first child with girlfriend Dee Devlin, the lightweight limelight is shining on two men: Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson. Under normal circumstances, it would be difficult to deny either of these two dynamic contenders a lightweight title shot. With McGregor currently on the shelf, however, Nurmagomedov and Ferguson are faced with two options: wait for McGregor to return, and hope they win the sweepstakes to become his next opponent, or take another fight in the meantime.

Russell Ess - December 12, 2016

The lightweight title picture is focusing in on the top two ranked lightweights all aiming for that shot at newly crowned UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor. UFC President Dana White has stated that “The Notorious” is taking 10 months off from fighting for the birth of his first child, which is due in the summer of 2017. This leaves more than enough time for #1 UFC ranked lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov and #2 ranked lightweight Tony Ferguson to finally settle their differences inside of the Octagon.

Tom Taylor - December 12, 2016

Last month, in the main event of UFC 205, Irish superstar Conor McGregor knocked out Eddie Alvarez to become the UFC lightweight champion. Following the win, the Irishman reaffirmed his intention to take some time off to start a family with long-time girlfriend Dee Devlin. McGregor’s hiatus from competition, of course, leaves the lightweight division’s many contenders in a bit of an undesirable spot, without a champion to gun for. The champ’s absence is undoubtedly most frustrating for Tony Ferguson, who is currently on a nine-fight win-streak, and Khabib Nurmagomedov, who boasts a flawless, 24-0 record. Both men have done pretty much all their is to do to earn a lightweight title shot, but without an active champ, neither can have one.

Tom Taylor - December 6, 2016

Last month, in the main event of the UFC’s latest trip to Mexico, Tony Ferguson earned a unanimous decision victory over former lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos. With this win, which was undeniably the biggest of his career, Ferguson extended his win streak to a whopping nine straight. From there, Ferguson seemed ready for a title shot against new lightweight champ Conor McGregor, or at the very least, an interim title fight with the undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov. Unfortunately for Ferguson, however, McGregor recently embarked on a hiatus from competition, and Nurmagomedov won’t be ready to fight until the spring.

Tom Taylor - November 28, 2016

Earlier this month, in the main event of the UFC’s latest trip to Mexico, Tony Ferguson outpointed former lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos. It was the biggest win of his career, and it thrust him into the uppermost echelon of the lightweight division. In his post-fight interview, however, Ferguson neglected to call out the champion, or even another top-ranked fighter. During an appearance on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, Ferguson explained this strange silence to host Ariel Helwani.

Tom Taylor - November 28, 2016

When Khabib Nurmagomedov tapped Michael Johnson with a kimura on the undercard of UFC 205, he extended his record to a perfect 24-0. With this pristine record, it became even harder to deny that he should be the man to receive the next crack at the lightweight title, now owned by Conor McGregor.

bjpenndotcom - November 23, 2016

Earlier this month, top ranked lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov delivered a spectacular performance as he picked up a third round submission win over #8 ranked lightweight Michael Johnson in a highly anticipated matchup. The win was not only a finish for Nurmagomedov, but a rather dominant one as he put on a horrendously vicious display of ground and pound throughout the fight, talking trash to both Johnson, and UFC President Dana White in the middle of the fight. Following the fight, there have been conflicting reports form both Nurmagomedov and his camp regarding his next move. Immediately following the fight, Nurmagomedov offered the UFC an ultimatum, stating that if he wasn’t given a title shot for his next fight, he would be looking to fight for another promotion in the future. That was then followed up by an interview with Khabib’s father, who said that his son would be willing to take another fight in the meantime to cement his place as the #1 contender.

Russell Ess - November 14, 2016

Following Conor McGregor’s historic win over Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 over the weekend, everyone wants to know what comes next for the Irish UFC superstar. On Monday’s episode of The MMA Hour, McGregor’s long-time coach John Kavanagh spoke about the next potential fight for “The Notorious” and said that he personally would like to see the McGregor vs. Diaz trilogy fight because he feels Nate is the second best lightweight in the world next to Conor McGregor.

Tom Taylor - November 8, 2016

Last Saturday, the UFC touched down in sun-soaked Mexico City with UFC Fight Night 98. With this exciting event in the rear-view mirror, the UFC has updated their official rankings to reflect the shifts and shakeups that resulted from it. The most notable rankings change that stemmed from the UFC’s recent trip to Mexico was the upward climb of Tony Ferguson. After defeating former champion Rafael Dos Anjos in the card’s main event, he surged past undefeated contender Khabib Nurmagomedov to steal the lightweight division’s number-one spot. Only the current champion Eddie Alvarez is ranked ahead of him.

Russell Ess - November 7, 2016

For just the second time in his professional MMA career, Rafael dos Anjos (25-9) has lost two fights in a row. After losing the UFC lightweight belt to Eddie Alvarez at UFC Fight Night 90 back in July, the former champion fought a tough and exciting battle over the weekend against Tony Ferguson (22-3) at UFC Fight Night 98, which took place in Mexico City. Ferguson was awarded a unanimous decision over dos Anjos and has stacked up nine wins in a row, setting a record that no other lightweight has been to achieve in the UFC. Ferguson is still looking to get his shot at UFC gold on his nine-fight winning streak.