After putting Ferguson through a ‘Hell Week’ of training, Goggins will be in Tony’s corner to keep him mentally sharp against Paddy Pimblett.
Watch out, Paddy Pimblett. Tony Ferguson is reportedly bringing ex-Navy SEAL and endurance trainer David Goggins to UFC 296 as his corner.
Ferguson has been trapped in a serious tailspin over the past few years, going 0-6 after Justin Gaethje snapped his 12-0 winning streak in May 2020. That was an absolute war and “El Cucuy” took a lot of damage. Has the 39-year-old’s body finally given out on him, or is it just a mentality thing?
Ferguson seems convinced that it’s just a mentality thing, and has brought in Goggins to try and push him out of his rut. Goggins is all about mind over matter, and he put our boy T-Ferg through a ‘Hell Week’ of cardio training that no one else has ever completed. According to UFC 296 commentator Jon Anik, he’ll also be in Ferguson’s corner for the do-or-die Paddy Pimblett fight.
“Certainly for us we want to hear how this training camp is different from past training camps,” Anik said in an interview with MMA Fighting. “Is [Ferguson’s old wrestling coach] David Mills still a centerpiece? Oftentimes the first lens for me into the preparation when I look into the 28 fighters is ‘Let me see that corner corner audio sheet, let me see who’s gonna be in the corner.’ It looks like David Goggins is probably going to be in that corner for Tony Ferguson.”
There’s been a lot of criticism from other UFC fighters over Goggins’ decision to push Ferguson through such extreme workouts. Many fear Tony will be burnt out by the time fight night comes. Anik echoed that concern.
“But what exactly has the [Goggins] preparation held?” he asked. “You know, for me I know that my body feels different at 45 than 35, even if I’m still exercising the same way. … Will he answer with veracity? I don’t know. How does his body feel, really, at this stage in his career? How is his body recovering, you know? But I’m excited to see him try to sort of, you know, have one final moment, and maybe it’ll come against Paddy Pimblett, maybe it wont.”
Ferguson remains prickly regarding criticism during this slump. Anik revealed the former interim lightweight champ has iced him out over perceived disloyalty to Team CSO.
“There was a time, certainly, when we were very close,” Anik said. “Then there was maybe a little bit of a dip in our relationship where I think there was a fighter meeting in which he didn’t feel like I was all in or all there, which obviously was a criticism that I took pretty seriously.”
Ferguson will have a chance to prove there’s still some gas left in the tank when he takes on Paddy Pimblett on December 16th.