Tony Ferguson says he would’ve retired if he “didn’t do good” in the first round against Michael Chandler

Tony Ferguson was closer to retiring than some may think.

On the main card of UFC 274, Ferguson was looking to snap his three-fight losing streak when he took on Michael Chandler. ‘El Cucuy’ said he was looking to prove he is still a top contender and in order to do that, he needed to beat ‘Iron’. Unfortnately for Ferguson, the result did not go his way as he was knocked out in the second round, but in the first round, he had some success and says that is what is keeping him going.

“I said if I knew that I didn’t have the gumption or the will to want to go anymore, if I didn’t do good in that first round, I would have called it quits.”@TonyFergusonXT on his renewed motivation and possibly retiring if he didn’t do well in the first round at #UFC274. pic.twitter.com/WK4cjhjH0N

— Submission Radio (@SubmissionRadio) May 16, 2022

“I had to go back, I talked to my Dad, I talked to my coaches, and I said if I knew that I didn’t have the gumption or the will to want to go anymore, if I didn’t do good in that first round, I would have called it quits,” Ferguson said to Submission Radio. “I would have said, f**k this, I’m out, I’m retiring, I’m going to go find something different, I’ll coach everybody to be at this high level and that’s it. But, when I went back and watched the fight and I remember reviewing everything, it was like something happened, something clicked in me.”

Tony Ferguson did have some success in the fight as he says, as he landed some solid shots on Michael Chandler. Even though the result didn’t go his way, he says he now has his hunger back and is excited to get back into there once he is ready.

“So, here I am, I have a TKO on my record, I have a submission record, you know what I mean. I’ve been put out, knocked out, I’ve lost by TKO, I’ve lost by decision,” Ferguson said. “It’s a pain in the ass to be able to look at these losses, but like I said, if I didn’t have the will and the want to be able to do that and then know that when Dana said I looked phenomenal in that first round, I looked really good, I would have just called it quits. But right now I’m f*****g hungry, man.

“I found myself back in the gym hitting the bag really light, not going too hard. This morning I didn’t wake up with a headache,” Ferguson continued. “I felt f*****g phenomenal this morning, I felt really good. I’ve been eating really well, I haven’t been treating my body like s**t or my mental game like s**t. I’ve really been focusing on what I can control, and you know, shout out to the world. The only things that we can control is our heart rate and our breathing. The rest is up to the big guys upstairs.”

Who would you like to see Tony Ferguson fight next?