Al Iaquinta wants Tony Ferguson next.
“Ragin” Al comes off a unanimous decision loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 223. The fight was for the vacant UFC lightweight championship. Iaquinta was filling in for Ferguson, who had suffered an injury during a freak accident.
The loss ended a five-fight win streak. Iaquinta finished four of those five wins via knockout. Iaquinta was expected to make his Octagon return against Justin Gaethje at UFC Lincoln. However, he withdrew from the contest.
Iaquinta has his eyes set on “El Cucuy” now that he’s ready to get back into the cage. He told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani that he “can’t stand” Ferguson and wants to fight the former interim lightweight champ in November:
Just spoke to @ALIAQUINTA. He said he’s finally healthier than he’s been in years.
He wants to fight the recently medically cleared @TonyFergusonXT next. Any card in November (MSG, China, TUF Finale …”)
“Can’t stand that guy,” he said.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) August 15, 2018
Ferguson indicated he’s not too interested in fighting Iaquinta upon his return in his online response:
Trying Too Hard Kid – Like @MoTownPhenom You Both Had Your Chance & Fucked It Up. You Sell Houses, I Build & Buy Em’ -Take Notes-
— Tony Ferguson (@TonyFergusonXT) August 16, 2018
Ferguson hasn’t lost a fight since May of 2012. He’s riding a ridiculous 10-fight win streak in the UFC. He has defeated the likes of Kevin Lee, Rafael dos Anjos and Edson Barboza in recent outings.
He most recently beat Lee in October 2017 to capture the interim lightweight title. Ferguson was expected to defend that title against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 223, but tore his LCL and was forced to withdraw due to the injury.
Ferguson likely wants to return for a fight with UFC gold on the line because of his recent streak. He might have to wait around for a shot at the title with Nurmagomedov defending his title against Conor McGregor in October
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