Now that Tony Ferguson disposed of Kevin Lee earlier this month at UFC 216 to claim the interim UFC lightweight title, “El Cucuy” can officially set his sights on the elusive Conor McGregor.
While “Notorious” has multiple options on the table for his long-awaited return to the Octagon, Ferguson has done more than enough over the past two years to lock down a title unification bout with the UFC’s biggest star. But that doesn’t mean Ferguson will be able to handle McGregor once the two lightweights get locked inside of the cage.
According to UFC light heavyweight champion and FOX analyst Daniel Cormier, “El Cucuy” would be out of his element against a superior striker like McGregor.
“I think he’s really good. I think his cardio and pace are fantastic. I believe he makes some mistakes that would really cost him against Conor,” Cormier said during a recent episode of Talk and Talker podcast. “Oh my goodness, do you see how high he’s holding his chin up when he’s throwing punches. You do that against McGregor, you’re getting sniped. You’re getting sniped!”
As a fighter who often gives up his chin to land a shot of his own it would be interesting to see how durable Ferguson remains if he gets clipped by “Notorious.” The interim champ has never been finished by strikes in his entire 26-fight career, but McGregor is known to flatten the unstoppable.
“When Conor hits you with a clean shot, it doesn’t affect people like most people’s big shots affect people. It sends you f*ckng skating on ice,” Cormier said. “It turns you into a baby deer, when they can’t stand up and they’re f*ckng shaking and sh*t.
“You just can’t let him hit you like that, but I think because of the way Tony fights, he kinda hangs his chin up there. That’ll make it so dangerous for him because McGregor is so accurate, so fast.”
At this point, Ferguson would be lucky enough to land an extremely lucrative title fight opposite McGregor, let alone walk through the lightweight champion’s best shots. However, Ferguson’s erratic and unpredictable style still makes him one of the worst matchups in the division for McGregor, and leaves “El Cucuy” as the front-runner to welcome the Irishman back to the mix.