“When he left, a little part of me left,” Tony Ferguson opens up about fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov never coming to fruition

UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson has spoken about unfruitful plans for fights between him and UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov.

“When he left, a little part of me left,” Tony Ferguson opens up about fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov never coming to fruition

Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov (Image courtesy: IMAGO)

Former Interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson is set to compete in the month of December. In a recent interview at The MMA Hour, Ferguson spoke about his foe, Khabib Nurmagomedov, with whom he was scheduled to compete on five different occasions. But because of injuries and COVID-19, that fight never came to fruition.

Further, this matchup is known around the UFC as one of the most cursed matchups of all time. Tony Ferguson said, “I know when Khabib left, a little part of me left with that. It kind of sucked a little bit because we’ve always had that. Then when that disappeared and the pandemic hit and the f***ing team left. And then just a whole bunch there was nothing else left for me kind of. Except what I told myself is I wanted to compete.”

YouTube video

He further added, “I wanted to compete enough so that way maybe possibly, win or lose, Khabib would come back.” Moreover, Tony Ferguson also revealed that Khabib Numagomedov and he were going to be the potential coaches in TUF 31 in place of Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler.

FS Video

However, all these plans came to naught due to Khabib’s retirement. In the end, Ferguson stated in the interview that his rivalry with Khabib would still go on, as he was not willing to shake the Hall of Famer’s hand.

Ferguson will take on Paddy Pimblett at UFC 296 in Las Vegas on December 16th. Paddy is an up-and-coming fighter who has already been projected as a future superstar. However, this could be an opportunity for Ferguson to make a turnaround in these later stages of his career. Currently, ‘El Cucuy’ is on a six-fight losing streak in the UFC.

Related: “Going after Mcnuggets,” Tony Ferguson’s unveils plan for Conor McGregor fight claiming Paddy Pimblett bout as the catalyst

A loss at UFC 296 could potentially be a wrap for Tony Ferguson

UFC CEO Dana White believes that Tony Ferguson vs. Paddy Pimblett could be an exciting matchup. However, the UFC boss has made it clear that a loss against Pimblett could be the end of the road for Ferguson in the UFC. The Englishman Pimblett has won the majority of his fights and holds the potential to be a future star.

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson(Image courtesy: MMA Fighting)

On the other hand, Tony Ferguson is suffering from a disappointing string of losses. With one more loss, ‘El Cucuy’ will have one of the longest losing streaks in the history of the UFC. Ever since his loss to Justin Gaethje, Ferguson has lost five straight fights. And now a matchup against a young fighter like Pimblett could make things difficult for Ferguson.

Despite his fans demanding a retirement, Tony Ferguson feels that he has more to give to his career. ‘El Cucuy’ fans will be eagerly looking forward to the December card as they’ll find out what lies ahead for Tony’s career.

In case you missed it!