It appears that Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov is indeed a fight that’s too good to be true.
A report arrived from MMA Fighting tonight that revealed sources had informed Ariel Helwani that Ferguson was out of his anticipated main event versus “The Eagle” at next weekend’s (Sat., April 7, 2018) UFC 223 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Apparently, Ferguson injured the LCL in his knee in training a few days ago and UFC President Dana White told ESPN that it was serious enough to require surgery:
“He actually tore it off the bone, he’s gonna need surgery on his knee,”
UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway, who recently was forced out of his scheduled title defense versus Frankie Edgar at March 3’s UFC 222, will apparently step in to face Nurmagomedov for some version of the lightweight title, the official version of which has not been contested for since Conor McGregor beat Eddie Alvarez at November 2016’s UFC 205.
White had high praise for Holloway, focusing on the potential history “Blessed” could make as a two-weight champion if he somehow got by the undefeated, bulldozing Nurmagomedov:
“He’s a stud,” White said of Holloway accepting the bout on short notice. “The guy hasn’t lost a fight since 2013, and that was a decision to Conor McGregor.
“He’s the type of guy that steps up for opportunities like this. And when you think about it, if he wins this fight, other than Conor McGregor, he will be the only guy to hold two belts at the same time.”
White said that McGregor couldn’t make weight and be ready in six days’ time when asked if “The Notorious” was in consideration to replace Ferguson, and did not really want to waste his biggest draw on short notice anyway:
“I don’t think Conor McGregor could make the weight on six days’ notice. That’s a tough weight cut for him,” White said. “And Conor is not the guy I want to throw in as a late replacement fighter. He’s a guy I want to make a fight with and have the right amount of time to promote the fight.
“I think Conor could return in September, and it could be against one of these guys.”
White clarified that Ferguson would lose the interim title he won the interim title by defeating Kevin Lee at last October’s UFC 216, and it appears he’s going to miss out on winning the official title in the immediate future.
Regardless of the confusion, however, this fight is for the real title according to White, and the winner will face McGregor sometime around this fall:
“That goes away,” White said. “This fight is for the title. The winner of this fight will be the champion.
“As soon as these guys step in the ring and throw a punch, it’s on for the title,” White said. “Whoever wins, wins the title and we’ll see what happens with Conor over the next several months. I know he had expressed some interest in fighting in September.”
Ferguson had been scheduled to face Nurmagomedov three times before, with each fight being called off for one injury or another to both fighters.
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