Tag: Tony Ferguson

Conor McGregor Reacts To Max Holloway’s UFC 222 Pullout

The MMA world was dealt collective disappointment yesterday when word arrived that UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his scheduled UFC 222 main event versus Frankie Edgar. The tough-as-nails champion wanted to fight no matter what, detailing what he said would go through in order to meet Edgar in a month’s […]

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The MMA world was dealt collective disappointment yesterday when word arrived that UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his scheduled UFC 222 main event versus Frankie Edgar.

The tough-as-nails champion wanted to fight no matter what, detailing what he said would go through in order to meet Edgar in a month’s time. But ultimately he simply could not compete in the alotted timeframe.

The UFC set out to replace the March 3 fight card’s main event with two high-profile bouts, seeking to book bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw against former teammate Cody Garbrandt in a rematch of their UFC 217 affair with Edgar then taking on surging contender Brian Ortega in the co-main.

Dillashaw turned the bout down, however, citing the birth of his child and lack of training before mocking ‘No Love’ with a brutal photo from his knockout win last November.

And it remains an uncertain spot for the promotion and the rapidly-approaching event, but the mocking surrounding the card didn’t stop there. UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor got in on the action by trolling Holloway with a photo from his 2013 win over “Blessed”:

When there is no referee to save you.

A post shared by Conor McGregor Official (@thenotoriousmma) on

‘The Notorious’ loves to rub salt in the wounds of his former opponents, yet it’s understandable if fans asked whether he should be doing so with his fighting future still very much up in the air as he acts a fool with his newfound mega-riches from boxing Floyd Mayweather.

This injury is bad timing for Holloway for sure, but the young Hawaiian has been a model of consistency for the UFC during his rise to championship status. He’s also stated he’s willing to take on any and all comers as champion, something that would most likely be true if he wasn’t hurt.

The same simply cannot be said for McGregor, who campaigned for a UFC bout versus Mayweather this week rather than a title defense against the winner of Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Is it time for McGregor to stop kicking willing fighters while they’re down and get back to fighting in MMA himself? Did that time pass long ago?

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Pic: UFC 223 Poster Suggests It’s For ‘World Lightweight Championship’

Everyone remotely associated with MMA is looking forward to the Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov main event at April 7’s UFC 223 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York – even if they don’t which version of the lightweight title will be on the line. Of course Ferguson is the interim champion as Conor […]

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Everyone remotely associated with MMA is looking forward to the Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov main event at April 7’s UFC 223 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York – even if they don’t which version of the lightweight title will be on the line.

Of course Ferguson is the interim champion as Conor McGregor drags his feet in deciding or announcing his long-awaited comeback, but the very real possibility of “The Notorious” never coming back after his $100 million payday to box Floyd Mayweather last year has the UFC is the precarious position of having to potentially strip their biggest star of a title again.

Yet they won’t come out and say it, as Dana White danced around the question when asked at a UFC 220 media event last month, giving his predictable and tiresome ‘we’ll see what happens’ in response. The situation was only clouded when White said the winner of Ferguson vs. Khabib would ‘be the champion,’ but gave no indication of what they would decide for McGregor.

With speculation running wild that they will strip him of a second title, the recently released UFC 223 poster may be an indication of those plans. Based on a photo of the poster released last night, the UFC 223 main event will be for the ‘world lightweight championship’ – not interim – suggesting McGregor would be stripped by fight time. Check it out:

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Conor McGregor Slams Floyd Mayweather For Stepping Into MMA Cage

Earlier today, ‘retired’ boxing legend Floyd Mayweather set the collective online mixed martial arts world ablaze after he posted a video of him briefly stepping into an MMA cage, prompting speculation that the UFC debut he shot down late last year could actually happen. It’s unlikely to happen, but if he were to make his […]

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Earlier today, ‘retired’ boxing legend Floyd Mayweather set the collective online mixed martial arts world ablaze after he posted a video of him briefly stepping into an MMA cage, prompting speculation that the UFC debut he shot down late last year could actually happen.

It’s unlikely to happen, but if he were to make his MMA debut against say, former boxing rival Conor McGregor, it may just become the biggest over-the-top scene in the history of MMA – if not combat sports as a whole.

So with the prospect of another record-setting purse (after his first one to box Mayweather has kept him on the sidelines and not defending his UFC belt) in plain view, McGregor was quick to respond to ‘Money’s’ short video on Twitter, laughing at his old foe by calling him his ‘son’ and signing off as ‘Senior’:

Standard operating procedure for “The Notorious,” whose future still remains unknown even though the MMA universe is crying for him to finally defend a UFC title – something he hasn’t done a single time since winning the featherweight title in December 2015.

It’s clear he’s all about the money, and it’s tough to blame him considering this is prizefighting, after all, but if McGregor truly just wants to take ‘money’ fights and never defend his belt, then the UFC owes it to the rest of the lightweight division to strip him and let them continue trying to further their careers.

That would open up a path for McGregor to potentially fight Mayweather in the octagon, something that seems highly unlikely due to the fact most believe ‘Money’ would get destroyed in MMA just like McGregor was stopped in the boxing ring.

The immediate fashion in which McGregor responded makes it seem like the UFC could be working on something in that regard, and it would probably be the Irishman’s first choice for his return if it were indeed a viable option.

For the sake of MMA purists everywhere, let’s hope it is not.

In today’s spectacle-focused era under Endeavor (formerly WME-IMG), it may be, however, so don’t be surprised if this topic heats up quite a bit in the next few days.

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Eddie Bravo: Tony Ferguson Will Throw Fire at Khabib on The Ground

Tony Ferguson’s coach is backing his fighter all the way leading to the big April showdown with Khabib Nurmagomedov. On April 7, Ferguson will put his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight gold on the line against Nurmagomedov. The tit…

Tony Ferguson’s coach is backing his fighter all the way leading to the big April showdown with Khabib Nurmagomedov. On April 7, Ferguson will put his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight gold on the line against Nurmagomedov. The title fight is set to headline UFC 223. The event takes place inside the Barclays Center in […]

Khabib Says Tony Ferguson Has Never Fought Anyone Like Him

On April 7, 2018, UFC 223 will go down live on pay-per-view (PPV) from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York and the event is set to be headlined by a long awaited lightweight title fight between Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov. Although undisputed 155-pound champion Conor McGregor is still sidelined and the division’s title […]

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On April 7, 2018, UFC 223 will go down live on pay-per-view (PPV) from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York and the event is set to be headlined by a long awaited lightweight title fight between Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Although undisputed 155-pound champion Conor McGregor is still sidelined and the division’s title picture is still a bit unclear, Ferguson and Nurmagomedov are considered by most to be two of the best lightweights in the world if not the two very best.

And those that feel that way certainly have good reason to, as Ferguson has won an incredible 10-straight, while “The Eagle” possesses a perfect 25-0 professional record.

As far as the fight itself goes, Nurmagomedov is without question one of the best wrestlers the UFC has ever seen, but Ferguson’s jiu-jitsu coach, Eddie Bravo, recently said that “El Cucuy” will ‘thank’ Nurmagomedov for taking him down and attack from the bottom:

“We’re going to turn around and attack him (on the ground),” Bravo said on an edition of WFAN’s Outside the Cage podcast. “We’re going to thank him for taking Tony down, and we’re going to throw some fire at him. It’s going to be different. No one has done that.

“I’m sure his defense is going to be tight. I’m sure he’s going to be studying rubber guard and all that, but we’re going to come there with fire. We’re going to come right at him.”

Bravo appears quite confident in his fighter, as he should be given Ferguson’s world class submission game and unorthodox style.

“The Eagle”, however, isn’t as worried, recently saying that “El Cucuy” has never fought a fighter like him before:

“I don’t think he has better jiu-jitsu than me, better grappling,” Nurmagomedov told RT Sport. “I think he’s unpredictable a little bit. He has very good knee, very good elbow. But I don’t think he ever fight with somebody like me, who have like pressure, top control, good everywhere. Strong.”

“When we go to the cage, when cage close, we’re gonna show this. Me and Tony Ferguson is different level.”

Who do you expect to come out on top on April 7?

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Manager Hints Khabib May Say ‘Bye Bye’ After Beating Ferguson & McGregor

Although interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson will take on top contender Khabib Nurmagomedov in the main event of April 7’s UFC 223, the MMA community is still awaiting undisputed lightweight champ Conor McGregor’s next move. Dana White and the UFC have remained coy on the subject, saying that the winner of Ferguson and Khabib would […]

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Although interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson will take on top contender Khabib Nurmagomedov in the main event of April 7’s UFC 223, the MMA community is still awaiting undisputed lightweight champ Conor McGregor’s next move.

Dana White and the UFC have remained coy on the subject, saying that the winner of Ferguson and Khabib would be ‘the champion’ but refusing to say that McGregor had been officially stripped of his title.

It’s prompted widespread speculation if McGregor will ever return to the octagon, and indeed many believe he may not return after making $100 million to box Floyd Mayweather last year, but in a recent interview with TMZ Sports (via Bloody Elbow), Khabib’s manager Ali Abdelaziz said his star would finish Ferguson, pick up a win over McGregor, and retire undefeated:

“We’re gonna beat Tony. We’re gonna stop Tony in three rounds. Khabib’s probably gonna retire undefeated because he’s gonna beat Conor, he’s gonna beat Tony, and he’s probably gonna say ‘Bye-bye.’”

As for just when he might meet McGregor after finally fighting Ferguson, Abdelaziz said Khabib would make McGregor wait to face him, just as he has the rest of the division:

“Khabib said he’s gonna make the motherf**ker wait,” said Abdelaziz. “That’s what he told me, word for word. ‘When I beat Tony, Conor’s got to get in line or he can go fight Nate Diaz or somebody and make some money.’ [Khabib] said he’s gonna make the division right. At the end of the day, he said Conor’s gonna have to beg.

Nurmagomedov turning down a fight with McGregor if he beats Ferguson is a highly unlikely scenario, however, as it would be the biggest fight in MMA right now and perhaps one of the biggest all-time, making any unnecessary waiting a ridiculous proposition – especially considering Nurmagomedov’s never-ending issues with injuries.

So even though it probably won’t happen, Abdelaziz insisted it will because McGregor should have fought his top client in Russia later this year like he said he was going to:

“On April 7, El Cucuy’s gonna get an ass-whooping and maybe Conor, maybe we’ll give him a crack. You see all his b**ch-ass coaches saying ‘Oh, Conor will knock out Khabib in the first round.’ Motherf**ker, you should have fought Khabib when you were supposed to fight him, when you said you wanted to fight him in Russia!”

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