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Tony Ferguson Willing To Cut 40 Pounds To Fight Jose Aldo

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Changing the landscape of yet another division, Conor McGregor crowned himself king of the lightweights at UFC 205. The ramifications of that historic victory are still being felt in two divisions. Jose Aldo was promoted to full champion at featherweight following McGregor being stripped, and now the 155-pound division is temporarily paused. As ‘The Notorious’ takes a six-month hiatus, top contenders Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson have been doing the lingo-tango. Possibly setting up a highly anticipated number one contender fight, ‘The Eagle’ and ‘El Cucuy’ have a long history together.

Having already been scheduled to fight twice, Nurmagomedov and Ferguson will probably never find a better time than now. With the champion absent for the moment, and the rest of the division tied or coming off losses, it seems the stars are aligning for this clash. Actually, according to Ferguson, that is sadly not the case. Although his camp has been in talks with Nurmagomedov’s, it looks as though negotiations have already fallen apart.

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Ferguson Willing To Drop

Earlier this month, number one contender Khabib Nurmagomedov challenged Tony Ferguson to fight in March 2017. ‘The Eagle’ suggested an interim title clash, but ‘El Cucuy’ isn’t willing to wait that long. Speaking with FOX Sports, Ferguson says it’s January or he’ll possibly go to featherweight to remain active. Yep, FEATHERWEIGHT!

“They wanted something to happen in Anaheim and I was pretty down for it. Khabib’s (Nurmagomedov) name came up and management talked about it and they came back at me that he needed more time. So whatever. It would have been awesome to fight in my hometown. It would have been bad ass.”

“Maybe (Jose) Aldo. Jump down to 145, see what’s up down there,” Ferguson said. “155’s pretty fun. Maybe bump up to 170. Just thinking about my weight right now, my wife got me this juice cleanse because I was getting kind of heavy. I should step on the scale right now — 185 (pounds).”

Interesting…

According to Damon Martin, Ferguson would have to cut about 40 pounds to make 145, judging by his current size. Although that might sound far too harrowing to even consider, ‘El Cucuy’ says he’d relish the challenge:

“I can do it. I’m a wrestler. I’ve been doing this a long time. I’m really focused,” Ferguson said. “145 would be really fun to test myself mentally, too. A lot of people, they like to climb these peaks and they like to do all these other things. I like to push my body to just extremity to get past the mental toughness barriers.

“So fighting at 145, that would be great. If Kenny Florian can do it, I can do it. I think I would pose a big threat at 145,”

How about Tony Ferguson fighting Jose Aldo for the title? Obviously interim challengers Max Holloway and Anthony Pettis might have something to say about that after they collide at UFC 206.

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Tony Ferguson: Chicken B*tch Khabib Keeps Running From Me

The post Tony Ferguson: Chicken B*tch Khabib Keeps Running From Me appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Although there are two crystal clear contenders at the top of the lightweight division, it’s not a simple picture at present. Since winning the title from Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205, Conor McGregor has gone on a six-month sabbatical to take care of family business. Resulting from the absence of the champion is a complicated landscape in the top five. With Rafael dos Anjos, Nate Diaz and Alvarez coming off losses, and McGregor away, Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov are arguably the only worthy contenders.

Perhaps Diaz’s popularity and existing rivalry makes him viable for a title fight down the line, but ‘The Eagle’ and ‘El Cucuy’ remain the hot property at 155 pounds. Having been scheduled to fight each other twice before, and now engaging in heated trash talk, it looks as though Ferguson and Nurmagomedov are looking to make it third time lucky. Yesterday Khabib challenged Ferguson to a March interim title fight, and the number two contender has now responded.

Mandatory Credit: Etzel Espinosa-USA TODAY Sports

Tony Sees Chicken, Not Eagle

Speaking during last night’s edition of The MMA Hour, streaking 155-pound contender Tony Ferguson unloaded on his rival ‘The Eagle.’ He claims that Khabib is scared to fight him, and is tired of hearing his rival ‘whining.’

“All bullsh*t aside, the guy is a whiny b*tch. He can whine as much as he wants to.”

“Instead of people saying, ‘hey, you need to go for the belt,’ or, ‘you need to do this, you need to do that’ — me, I’m waving my little finger in the air and I f*cking keep moving forward. I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing, which is taking care of my family and training my ass off. And that translates into winning and getting Performance of the Night bonuses. Right now I got, what, eight finishes out of 12? I’m on a nine-fight win streak. I’m what, 22-3? Sh*t, where’s my title shot, man? I’m not complaining, I’m not saying nothing, because I know it’s going to come to me.”

The Verbal Assault Continues

“Like I said before, I’m not going to rob [Nurmagomedov] of an ass-whooping. He does deserve one from my hands,”

“Who else is he going to fight? He wants to fight for a belt. (Eddie) Alvarez ain’t going to fight him. Come on, dude. That dude’s been running from me for a long time. He hasn’t wanted nothing to do with me. His pops was like the first one to say, ‘yeah, my son will fight you,’ and Khabib’s running the other way. He’s calling Conor a chicken and Khabib is running from me, I’m calling him a chicken. So it’s a trickle effect, man. I’m telling you, everybody is scared of the Bogeyman at the end.”

Surely this is the only fight to make at the top of the lightweight division. Unfortunately this pairing could rob the fans of seeing one of these fierce lightweights against Conor McGregor. That said, considering they’ve both beaten pretty much everyone in the division already, it might just be a case of who gets the title shot first. Another division topped by McGregor, another conundrum waiting to be unravelled.

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With Conor McGregor Shelved, Nurmagomedov and Ferguson Are Down to Battle

The most lucrative fight in MMA today is a “red panty night” with Conor McGregor.
Two fighters all too aware of this reality are top lightweight contenders Khabib Nurmagomedov (24-0) and Tony Ferguson (22-3).

Both men are beyond qualified for a crack …

The most lucrative fight in MMA today is a “red panty night” with Conor McGregor.

Two fighters all too aware of this reality are top lightweight contenders Khabib Nurmagomedov (24-0) and Tony Ferguson (22-3).

Both men are beyond qualified for a crack at the lightweight title. But they are left in something of a holding pattern with McGregor likely taking off the first half of 2017 due to the birth of his first child. With that in mind, they seem to be turning their sights to each other—albeit while keeping an eye on that massive McGregor payday.

Ferguson addressed the potential matchup on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour (h/t MMA Fighting‘s Shaun Al-Shatti for the transcription):

All bulls–t aside, the guy is a whiny b—h. He can whine as much as he wants to.

Like I said before, I’m not going to rob [Nurmagomedov] of an ass-whooping. He does deserve one from my hands.

…

He’s calling Conor a chicken and Khabib is running from me, I’m calling him a chicken. So it’s a trickle effect, man. I’m telling you, everybody is scared of the Bogeyman at the end.

Nurmagomedov, for his part, seems to be down for a fight with Ferguson.

“If Conor don’t want fight before May/June, I want to take other fight. I want to fight for the interim belt with Tony Ferguson,” Nurmagomedov said in an interview with RT Sport (h/t MMA Fighting‘s Jed Meshew).

He then discussed their ill-fated UFC on Fox 19 fight: “Last time he was injured. He pulled out, not me. He’s not coming to April 16 to the fight. Before I have been injured and now it’s, why not? Now, I think the UFC wants to make this fight. I feel this and for me its perfect date is March. Not early, only March.”

The rivalry between Ferguson and Nurmagomedov has been a snakebitten one to this point.

As Nurmagomedov mentioned, the two were set to face off at UFC on Fox 19, though Ferguson was forced to pull out due to an issue with his lungs. Before that, they were set to face off at 2015’s The Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale, though Nurmagomedov was forced off the card due to a rib injury.

With no one else especially close to a title shot at 155 pounds, it’s a no-brainer to finally get these two in the cage together.

The undefeated Nurmagomedov would likely be the betting favorite given his combination of nearly unstoppable takedowns and soul-crushing ground-and-pound. Don’t count out Ferguson, though. He’s the taller and longer fighter as well as one of the most unpredictable action fighters in all of MMA when it comes to both the stand-up and ground game.

The winner would be standing tall as perhaps the most accomplished No. 1 contender to a belt in UFC history (alongside featherweight’s Max Holloway). Here’s hoping the UFC can get this fight booked as soon as possible and both men can remain healthy.

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If Khabib Nurmagomedov Wants It, Tony Ferguson Is Ready

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQ3B0okRgUM[/embed]

Tony Ferguson has no issue fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov.

In fact, the lightweight contender wants to settle unfinished business with “The Eagle” sooner rather than later.

“All (expletive) aside, the guy is a whiny (expletive),” Ferguson said during an appearance on The MMA Hour (thanks to MMA Fighting for the quotes). “He can whine as much as he wants to. Instead of people saying, ‘hey, you need to go for the belt,’ or, ‘you need to do this, you need to do that’ — me, I’m waving my little finger in the air and I (expletive) keep moving forward. I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing, which is taking care of my family and training my ass off. And that translates into winning and getting Performance of the Night bonuses. Right now I got, what, eight finishes out of 12? I’m on a nine-fight win streak. I’m what, 22-3?
“Where’s my title shot, man? I’m not complaining, I’m not saying nothing, because I know it’s going to come to me.”

Earlier this year, Ferguson won his ninth consecutive fight when eh defeated former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos. Nurmagomedov and Ferguson have been signed previously, but injuries have kept the two apart.

“Like I said before, I’m not going to rob (him) of an ass-whooping. He does deserve one from my hands,” Ferguson said.

Tony Ferguson has no issue fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov.

In fact, the lightweight contender wants to settle unfinished business with “The Eagle” sooner rather than later.

“Like I said before, I’m not going to rob (him) of an ass-whooping. He does deserve one from my hands,” Ferguson said.

Longest UFC Winning Streaks Without A Title Shot

MMA is such a competitive, multi-faceted and unpredictable sport that putting together long winning streaks very rarely happen – particularly in the UFC, where many of the sport’s best fighters battle each other on a regular basis. With that in mind, you’d think that compiling a lengthy unbeaten run inside the Octagon would lead to

The post Longest UFC Winning Streaks Without A Title Shot appeared first on LowKick MMA.

With that in mind, you’d think that compiling a lengthy unbeaten run inside the Octagon would lead to a title shot sooner than later, but unfortunately the record books show that’s not always been the case.

As you’ll see in the pages that follow, there has been numerous examples in recent years of fighters putting together impressive winning streaks in the UFC without ever getting the opportunity to fight the champion of their division.

This is the story of some of those fighters who came so close, yet so far away to winning the belt, some who stubbornly refused to lose until they achieved their dream, and others who to this day continue to add to their unprecedented, record-breaking winning streaks in the hope that one day the blood, sweat and tears that they’ve spilled in the Octagon will finally be rewarded.

Matt Brown

7 Fights (February 2012 – May 2014)

Matt ‘The Immortal’ Brown’s seven fight winning streak between 2012-2014 will go down as one of the most unexpected career resurgences in UFC history, as prior to that he was on the verge of being cut after losing four of his previous five bouts.

A sudden surge in form saw him stop six out his next seven opponents by either TKO or KO, defeating well-respected fighters like Stephen Thompson, Mike Swick, Jordan Mein, Mike Pyle and Erick Silva along the way.

One final hurdle awaited him – a title eliminator fight against Robbie Lawler at UFC On FOX 12, but alas that proved to be a step too far, with Brown losing out by unanimous decision.

Brown has never been able to replicate that form in the years since, slumping to another 1-4 record over the past couple of years.

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Khabib Nurmagomedov Moving Back To Tony Ferguson For Next Fight

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbVD0R2mXjw[/embed]

It appears Khabib Nurmagomedov has decided fighting for the UFC is the better option for him right now.

After stating he would only meet lightweight champion Conor McGregor next, “The E…

It appears Khabib Nurmagomedov has decided fighting for the UFC is the better option for him right now.

After stating he would only meet lightweight champion Conor McGregor next, “The Eagle” is focusing in now on Tony Ferguson in early 2017. The two were set to meet earlier this year, but injuries kept them from squaring off in a key eliminator bout at 155 pounds.

“I feel very bad about this because before this year I have two years rest because I have injured all the time. Now I don’t want (to be) waiting for this guy. If Conor don’t want fight before May or June, I want to take other fight. I want to fight for the interim belt with Tony Ferguson,” Nurmagomedov told RT Sports. “Last time he was injured. He pulled out, not me. He’s not coming to April 16 to the fight. Before I have been injured and now it’s, why not? Now, I think the UFC wants to make this fight. I feel this and for me its perfect date is March. Not early, only March.”

Recently, Nurmagomedov bested Michael Johnson to keep his unbeaten record intact. Ferguson, meanwhile, downed former division kingpin Rafael dos Anjos.