Jake Paul shuts down rumored fight with Tony Ferguson in MMA bow: ‘I don’t want to see him go out like that’

Jake Paul shuts down MMA debut fight with Tony Ferguson I don't want to see him go out like thatAmid links to an expected professional mixed martial arts debut later this annum, off the back of his ninth…

Jake Paul shuts down MMA debut fight with Tony Ferguson I don't want to see him go out like that

Amid links to an expected professional mixed martial arts debut later this annum, off the back of his ninth professional boxing win over the course of last weekend, Jake Paul has immediately shut the door on a potential debut against former interim UFC lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson. 

Paul, who improved to 9-1 as a professional boxer over the course of last weekend in San Juan, Puerto Rico, turned in a blistering opening round TKO win over the returning former Golden Gloves winner, Ryan Bourland. 

The victory came as Ohio native, Paul’s third consecutively, following a December knockout of Andre Auguse, and a decision win over former UFC star, Nate Diaz back in August of last year in the Stockton native’s professional boxing debut. 

Jake Paul vetos Tony Ferguson fight in MMA debut

And penning a multi-fight deal with the Peter Murray-led PFL (Professional Fighters League) last year ahead of an expected mixed martial arts with the North American-based organization, Paul has immediately stopped talk of a potential fight with the faltering Ferguson – claiming he would hate to see the Oxnard native “go out” against him.

“Anyone who can get out of their [UFC] contract, I’ll fight,” Jake Paul told assembled media after his win over the weekend. “That’s easy work, as far as I am concerned. I do want to do a PFL MMA match – it just has to be the right opponent. But Nate (Diaz) did duck my $15,000,000 offer, so we’ll see who else is on the chopping block.

“Tony Ferguson? He said he wanted to fight? I don’t want to see him go out like that – that would be sad,” Jake Paul explained. “He’s a great guy. We don’t want that for Tony.” 

In the midst of a record-setting seven-fight losing skid inside the Octagon, The Ultimate Fighter victor and former interim lightweight kingpin, Ferguson most recently dropped a decision loss to Paddy Pimblett at UFC 296 back in December.

Would you like to see Jake Paul fight Tony Ferguson?

Video – UFC icons Tony Ferguson and Nate Diaz catch up with each other at MMA event in Los Angeles

Tony Ferguson and Nate DiazNearly a year and a half removed from their UFC 279 clash, Tony Ferguson and Nate Diaz caught up…

Tony Ferguson and Nate Diaz

Nearly a year and a half removed from their UFC 279 clash, Tony Ferguson and Nate Diaz caught up with one another while attending the Up Next Fighting event in L.A.

After 15 years with the promotion, Nate Diaz put a cap on his UFC career with a fourth-round submission victory over ‘El Cucuy’ in their first and only meeting. Since then, the ‘Stockton Samurai’ made his professional boxing debut against YouTube-star-turned-pugilist Jake Paul in August. Diaz came up short in the entertaining 10-round bout, suffering a unanimous decision loss to ‘The Problem Child.’

Recent rumors have circulated that Diaz will return to the squared circle later this year for a fight with the recently unretired Jorge Masivdal under the former BMF titleholder’s Gamebred Boxing banner.

Tony Ferguson isn’t going anywhere

As for Tony Ferguson, the ex-interim champ finds himself on the cusp of making history. After failing to climb back into the win column against Paddy Pimblett in December, ‘El Cucuy’ has lost seven straight, tying the record once set by Octagon legend B.J. Penn.

With no intentions of retiring, Ferguson is one win away from taking sole possession of the UFC’s record for longest losing streak.

“I’m already a Hall of Famer, man,” Ferguson said on the JAXXON Podcast “They already f*cking know it, and you know what? I’m not retiring. Anytime I get hurt, I come back with a f*cking vengeance because, like I said, you need a slap in that face in order to do it because the only person that’s going to do it is ourselves. Nobody is going to tell us what the f*ck to do. I’m going to fight until the wheels fall off. F*ck retiring” (h/t MMA Junkie).

Tony Ferguson provides update on UFC future: ‘I’m going to keep fighting until the wheels fall off’

Tony Ferguson plans to keep fighting in the UFC until the wheels fall offFormer interim lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson maintains he still has no plans to call time on his storied mixed…

Tony Ferguson plans to keep fighting in the UFC until the wheels fall off

Former interim lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson maintains he still has no plans to call time on his storied mixed martial arts career in the immediate future, despite finding himself in the midst of a record-setting seven fight losing run.

Ferguson, a former interim lightweight champion, has been sidelined from the Octagon since he featured at UFC 296 back in December, suffering another one-sided loss in the form of a unanimous decision defeat to Liverpool prospect, Paddy Pimblett.

Tony Ferguson plans to continue fighting

An Ultimate Fighter victor, Oxnard native, Ferguson has been urged by Hall of Famers as well as fellow current fighters to call time on his career, however, insists he still has no plans to stop fighting in active competition.

“I’m going to fight until the wheels fall out,” Tony Ferguson told Rampage Jackson on the JAXXON Podcast. “F*ck retiring, dude. If you’re a competitor for the longest time – and I’m a three-sport athlete. I wanted to go back and play pro ball. I wanted to go and do another f*cking thing. I wanted to do all this sh*t because I’m that guy.”

“I’m not saying I got burned out, but I got burned out with MMA,” Tony Ferguson explained. “Pandemic – my business was the only one that didn’t close. I kept sports going, dude. Not one other motherf*cker put the belt on the line to keep sports going. B*tches from Khabib’s (Nurmagomedov) camp ran back to f*ckin’ mommy. Conor (McGregor) was telling everybody to stay inside. My ass was sitting out here f*cking being the only f*cking car going down 17th. street doing all this sh*t.”

Do you think Tony Ferguson should call time on his UFC tenure?

UFC legend ‘Rampage’ Jackson offers Tony Ferguson some words of wisdom amid seven-fight losing skid

RampageOctagon icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson offered some words of wisdom to Tony Ferguson. El Cucuy‘ is on the cusp…

Rampage

Octagon icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson offered some words of wisdom to Tony Ferguson.

El Cucuy‘ is on the cusp of making UFC history. Unfortunately, it’s not the type of history you generally want to be associated with. The former lightweight interim champion has lost seven fights in a row, tying the record once set by another legend of the sport — B.J. Penn. With one more loss, Ferguson will claim sole possession of the record for the longest losing streak in promotional history.

Appearing on the JAXXON podcast, Ferguson received some heartfelt advice from ‘Rampage’ while discussing his struggle to find the win column in recent years.

“Tell yourself in the morning when you wake up, give yourself an ‘I deserve this. I deserve this victory. I deserve to get back on top. I deserve everything because I worked hard. I’m a hard worker.’ Tell yourself that every morning when you wake up, thank the man up high,” Jackson said. “Show gratitude. Thank him for your healthy beautiful kids. Your beautiful wife. Everything. Thank him for the things you don’t have. Thank him for things that you want and never talk about what you don’t have. Always thank him for everything.

“And then tell yourself you do deserve it. And don’t feel guilty for anything you’ve done in the past. We’re all ratchet men. Nobody’s perfect. You deserve it. You deserve everything.”

It’s been nearly five years since Tony Ferguson has seen his hand raised inside the Octagon. After amassing a record-setting 12-straight wins in the lightweight division, ‘El Cucuy’ suffered a brutal fifth-round knockout loss against current BMF titleholder Justin Gaethje at UFC 249 in May 2020. He hasn’t been the same since.

Ferguson has come up short against some of the absolute best fighters at 155, including Charles Oliveira, Beneil Dariush, Michael Chandler, and Nate Diaz. However, his most recent losses against Bobby Green and Paddy Pimblett have fans practically begging him to hang up his gloves — something he has no intention of doing.

Kevin Lee eyes Tony Ferguson rematch after confirming retirement-Snapping UFC return: ‘There’s great fights’

Kevin Lee eyes rematch fight with Tony Ferguson after snapping retirement UFC returnFormer interim lightweight title challenger, Kevin Lee has already laid out a host of names to welcome him back…

Kevin Lee eyes rematch fight with Tony Ferguson after snapping retirement UFC return

Former interim lightweight title challenger, Kevin Lee has already laid out a host of names to welcome him back to the Octagon after confirming the snapping of his retirement from active competition – with the ex-UFC championship chaser suggesting a rematch fight with former rival, Tony Ferguson.

Lee, a former interim lightweight title challenger – who featured against Ferguson in a triangle choke submission loss back in 2017 in the pair’s championship battle, confirmed his plans to finish his fighting career back in the summer of last year.

However, less than a year later, the Michigan native confirmed this week how a conversation with his mother sparked his decision to make a retirement u-turn – and chase a comeback fight under the UFC banner once more.

Making his return at a UFC Vegas 76 card back in July of last year, Lee, who has dealt with a slew of recurring knee injuries in the latter tenure of his career, suffered a catastrophic guillotine choke submission loss to Rinat Fakhretdinov in just 55 seconds. 

Kevin Lee welcomes Tony Ferguson rematch in UFC return

And off the back of his announcement of a comeback to active competition earlier this week, Lee suggested future fights in his return against the likes of the above-mentioned, Ferguson, lightweight staple, Michael Chandler, or even former two-division champion, Conor McGregor.

“There’s a couple great fights [for a comeback],” Kevin Lee told Middleeasy during a recent interview. “Tony Ferguson, maybe the winner or loser of Conor (McGregor) or (Michael) Chandler.”

“I’m honestly not focused too much on opponents right now,” Kevin Lee continued. “I think I have a long road ahead of me as far as getting healthy [goes]. Two getting into shape, and three, singing a contract. Then maybe we can look at location, and then talk about opponents. So, it’s far down the road for me to be thinking about opponents.”

Over the course of his stint in the Octagon collectively, Lee has turned in notable wins over the likes of Efrain Escudero, Jake Matthews, Michael Chiesa, Edson Barboza, and most recently, a hellacious high-kick KO win over then-surging wrestling ace, Gregor Gillespie. 

Would you like to see Kevin Lee fight Tony Ferguson in his return to the UFC?

Tony Ferguson laments failed fight with UFC rival Conor McGregor: ‘That kid would never sign on the dotted line’

Tony Ferguson laments failed fight with Conor McGregor he would never sign on the dotted line UFCFormer interim lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson has claimed despite multiple efforts to land a fight with former stablemate and…

Tony Ferguson laments failed fight with Conor McGregor he would never sign on the dotted line UFC

Former interim lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson has claimed despite multiple efforts to land a fight with former stablemate and two-division UFC champion, Conor McGregor – the Dubliner never elected to actually put pen to paper on a deal to clash.

Ferguson, a former interim lightweight titleholder, has been sidelined since he suffered his record-tying seventh consecutive loss at UFC 296 back in December, dropping a unanimous decision defeat to Liverpool contender, Paddy Pimblett over the course of three rounds.

As for McGregor, the former undisputed lightweight and featherweight champion, is expected to make his return to the Octagon this summer, most recently fracturing his left tibia and fibula in an opening round doctor’s stoppage TKO loss to Dustin Poirier back in 2021. 

And forever on an apparent collision course, particularly following McGregor title success at 155 pounds back in 2016 – Ferguson failed to ever secure a fight with the Dubliner, who then shared the same management firm with the ex-champion, under the banner of Paradigm Sports.

Tony Ferguson discusses failed Conor McGregor fight

Sharing his thoughts on a failed showdown with McGregor, Ferguson, who held the interim lightweight crown back in 2017 when the Crumlin striker still also held lightweight spoils, claimed the 35-year-old never signed a contract to fight him.

“No dice,” Tony Ferguson said of a fight with Conor McGregor when replying to a user on his official X account. “That kid would never sign on the dotted line – champ.” 

Expected to make his comeback potentially as soon as the end of June during International Fight Week, McGregor revealed before the turn of the year how he would be fighting former lightweight title chaser, Michael Chandler – in a shocking middleweight limit debut for both. 

Who would have won in a fight between Tony Ferguson or Conor McGregor?