(Riley’s last tangle with a TUF winner didn’t work out too well for his face. Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)
The UFC confirmed last night that Tony Ferguson — who won last season of the Ultimate Fighter by knocking out four dudes consecutively in the welterweight bracket — will make his Octagon return on the UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage card (September 24th, Denver). Now competing at lightweight, Ferguson is slated to meet Team Jackson veteran Aaron Riley (30-12-1, 3-4 UFC), who hasn’t fought since his unanimous decision win over Joe Brammer last May at UFC 114. Riley was scheduled to face Pat Audinwood at UFC 119 later that year but had to withdraw due to injury.
It won’t be the first time that Riley has been drafted to act as a gatekeeper for a brand-new TUF winner. In November 2009 at UFC 105, he faced TUF 9 lightweight champ Ross Pearson and lost by doctor’s stoppage TKO. Between Riley’s inconsistent performances and long layoff, it seems like the UFC is counting on him to make their new prospect look good. Can ‘El Cucuy’ knock out another one?
The current list of UFC 135’s reported matchups is after the jump…
(Riley’s last tangle with a TUF winner didn’t work out too well for his face. Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)
The UFC confirmed last night that Tony Ferguson — who won last season of the Ultimate Fighter by knocking out four dudes consecutively in the welterweight bracket — will make his Octagon return on the UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage card (September 24th, Denver). Now competing at lightweight, Ferguson is slated to meet Team Jackson veteran Aaron Riley (30-12-1, 3-4 UFC), who hasn’t fought since his unanimous decision win over Joe Brammer last May at UFC 114. Riley was scheduled to face Pat Audinwood at UFC 119 later that year but had to withdraw due to injury.
It won’t be the first time that Riley has been drafted to act as a gatekeeper for a brand-new TUF winner. In November 2009 at UFC 105, he faced TUF 9 lightweight champ Ross Pearson and lost by doctor’s stoppage TKO. Between Riley’s inconsistent performances and long layoff, it seems like the UFC is counting on him to make their new prospect look good. Can ‘El Cucuy’ knock out another one?
The current list of UFC 135′s reported matchups is after the jump…
Ferguson, who beat Ramsey Nijem at the TUF 13 Finale in Las Vegas on June 4 with a first-round knockout, will face Aaron Riley in a lightweight bout at UFC 135 on Sept. 24 in Denver. The UFC announced the fight booking on Twitter on Monday night.
Ferguson (11-2, 1-0 UFC) has won four straight fights, including his UFC debut victory over Nijem, which also netted him a $40,000 Knockout of the Night bonus to go along with his guaranteed UFC contract. That fight was at welterweight. Against Riley (30-12-1, 3-4 UFC), Ferguson will return to the lightweight division.
On Season 13 of TUF, Ferguson fought for coach Brock Lesnar’s team. The three wins Ferguson had in the TUF house to reach the live finale were all knockouts or TKOs. Those those three fights are not official, if counted he has seven straight TKO or KO victories. After taping for the season finished, Ferguson trained at Lesnar’s Death Clutch camp in Minnesota to prepare for his fight with Nijem.
Riley has been out of action for more than a year, since a unanimous decision win over Joe Brammer at UFC 114 in May 2010. Riley, an Indiana native, was expected to return at UFC 119 in Indianapolis last September, but pulled out of his fight with Pat Audinwood with an injury. When he returns in September, it will be after a 16-month layoff.
Riley, whose primary training home is with Greg Jackson’s camp in Albuquerque, N.M., is in his third stint with the UFC. He was one-and-done with losses to Robbie Lawler at UFC 37 and Spencer Fisher at Fight Night 3. Since returning at UFC 91, Riley has gone 3-2, but hasn’t put together consecutive wins. His three wins have all been by unanimous decision.
UFC 135 will take place at the Pepsi Center in Denver. It will be the promotion’s first trip to Colorado since the first UFC on Versus event in March 2010, which took place in the north Denver suburb of Broomfield. The UFC hasn’t been to Denver proper since UFC: The Ultimate Ultimate in December 1995. UFC 1 and UFC 2 also took place in Denver.
UFC 135 is expected to be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones, making his first defense, and former champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Also on the card, Hall of Famer and former welterweight champion Matt Hughes will face former lightweight title challenger Diego Sanchez.
Filed under: UFCI’ve always wondered what Ultimate Fighter winners do with their cut-glass trophies. It looks like something you might get for being the most improved player on a high school water polo team, so I’d be surprised if too many recipients h…
I’ve always wondered what Ultimate Fighter winners do with their cut-glass trophies. It looks like something you might get for being the most improved player on a high school water polo team, so I’d be surprised if too many recipients have it displayed prominently in their homes.
I keep expecting to see one show up on Ebay, but then who would buy it? I have no idea, but maybe Tony Ferguson will get a chance to find out. He’s our latest reality show winner, joining a diverse group that has had wildly varied post-grad results.
So what does Ferguson’s win mean, and how far has Anthony Pettis fallen after putting his title shot on the line against Clay Guida? The answers to those questions and more await you, as we sort through the biggest winners, losers, and everything in between after the TUF 13 Finale.
Biggest Winner: Clay Guida
Any lightweight who has ever considered a strategy that involves tiring Guida out only needs to look at him bouncing around in the post-fight interview after three hard rounds to know what a bad idea that is. Against Pettis, Guida showed that a non-stop motor and a wealth of quality experience to draw upon is sometimes all you need to get your hand raised. The decision victory was Guida’s 29th win and his 40th pro fight overall. Even Guida would probably agree that Jim Miller deserves to be ahead of him in line for a crack at the belt, but “The Carpenter” is definitely in the conversation now. What he lacks in sheer talent, he makes up for with work ethic and a willingness to get right in your face and stay there all night. How can you not root for a guy like that?
Biggest Loser: Anthony Pettis
Pettis gets this distinction less for his performance than for what it cost him. He didn’t fight poorly, but all it took was fifteen minutes on a Saturday night for him to go from number one contender to the middle of a crowded pack. Not that it needs to be anything more than a minor setback in the long run. He’s young and has a lot of potential, but Guida showed us all that there are some holes in his game. Some of that is just inexperience. He caught a big break in the third round, yet couldn’t capitalize on it. It’s also possible that he’s trying to force those crowd-pleasing kicks a little too much, which resulted in more interesting misses than useful hits against Guida. He lost his title shot with the defeat, but it’s not the end of the world. If he uses it as a learning experience, this will be nothing more than a speed bump in a promising career.
Best Prospect: Tony Ferguson
He can wrestle and he can swat – a combination that makes him a man to be taken seriously. If we’ve learned anything from 13 seasons of TUF, however, it’s that winning the show is not quite the career-crowning achievement it’s made out to be. What it is, is a nice start for Ferguson and a chance to develop in the UFC with a little more slack than most new hires get. That’s why I wouldn’t recommend calling out guys like Amir Sadollah. While there are benefits to being proactive about matchmaking, the TUF winner usually gets to ease into the big time a little more gently. I don’t want to say he should expect an easy fight in his first post-TUF appearance. There aren’t many of those to be found in the UFC. But there are easier fights out there, and with them, a chance to get comfortable in the Octagon. Just because you’re a reality TV hero, it doesn’t mean the roads are all paved with gold now. Just ask Efrain Escudero.
Least Certain Future: Ramsey Nijem
He looked great on TUF, but all it took was one lunging left hook from Ferguson to stiffen him up like stale toast. He’s obviously got talent, but he also seems like he might not be quite ready for the UFC just yet. He’s now 4-2 in his career, and his most high profile wins were reality show exhibition bouts. He might still turn into a legitimate UFC fighter, but he’d better do it soon. It doesn’t take much to go from TUF finalist to TUF footnote. Just ask Kris McCray. And Vinny Magalhaes. And Luke Cummo. And…you know what? I think you get it.
Biggest Win Under Dire Circumstances: Ed Herman
After losing three of his last four and sitting out with a recurring knee injury for nearly two years, Herman was desperate for a big victory. Knocking out a tough opponent like Tim Credeur in less than a minute is a good way to get back on the map. Herman should consider it a temporary stay, and one possibly aided by the fact that Credeur had been out of action nearly as long as he had. Now Herman has to hope that he’s more successful in his comeback than he was before his initial injury.
Most Disturbing Trend: Ken Stone‘s recent KO’s
He was on the business end of a brutal slam knockout back in December, then got pounded out by Scott Jorgensen in the first round on Saturday night. Two scary knockouts in a row – all in a six-month span – is never good for your career prospects, but it’s even worse for your brain. While we still don’t know a ton about knockouts and long-term brain health, we do know that it’s a bad sign when a fighter keeps ending bouts asleep on the mat, especially when the knockouts start to come easier and easier. Maybe Stone could take some time off and reevaluate. Even if he doesn’t want to, it’s quite possible that the Zuffa contract axe will do it for him.
Most in Need of a Step Up in Competition: Kyle Kingsbury
The decision over Maldonado was his fourth straight victory in the UFC. Now that his skills have caught up to his size and natural athleticism, he seems like a guy who might actually go places in the light heavyweight division. It’s hard to know for sure though, since the UFC keeps giving him opponents who are all at roughly the same level. Jared Hamman, Ricardo Romero, Fabio Maldonado – all are tough guys, but it’s not exactly a steady climb in quality of competition. Now’s the time to throw Kingsbury into the deep water and find out if he can swim.
Least Convincing Effort: Josh Grispi
It’s strange to think that not so long ago, this guy was considered a credible challenger for Jose Aldo’s title. The fighter who showed up to face George Roop on Saturday looked like a man who would have preferred to be almost anywhere else. It’s never a good sign when your cornermen are all but begging you not to quit between rounds. He made it into the third, but just barely, and he didn’t need much encouragement to crumble up and collapse after Roop hammered him with a body shot. Any fighter is going to have his good nights and bad nights, but Grispi has fallen off hard lately. Might be time to sit down with his coaches and talk about what he’s really trying to accomplish here.
And to think, Tony Ferguson is the asshole of the group. Image via yfrog
Winning The Ultimate Fighter may no longer signify that you’ll be a force in your division for years to come. Or even a relevantname in your division. Or even that you have job security. But it does mean that you now have a six figure contract with the UFC, and if you happen to knock the other guy out in the process, you’ll pocket an additional 40k for “Knock Out of the Night” bonus. See? The show hasn’t completely lost its luster.
And to think, Tony Ferguson is the asshole of the group. Image via yfrog
Winning The Ultimate Fighter may no longer signify that you’ll be a force in your division for years to come. Or even a relevantname in your division. Or even that you have job security. But it does mean that you now have a six figure contract with the UFC, and if you happen to knock the other guy out in the process, you’ll pocket an additional 40k for “Knock Out of the Night” bonus. See? The show hasn’t completely lost its luster.
Other fighters pocketing 40k for their performances were Kyle Kingsbury, Fabio Maldonado and Reuben Duran. Kingsbury and Maldonado were awarded “Fight of the Night” honors for their three round scrap that saw both men leaving the cage battered. Also, Reuben Duran took home a “Submission of the Night” bonus for his rear-naked choke victory over Francisco Rivera. For those keeping score, this is the second straight card to have only one fight end via submission, with the winner utilizing a rear-naked choke.
Pettis, and his hopes at a title shot, come crashing down (pic: MMAFightNews.net)
Judging from the sparse commentary throughout last night’s live blog, most of you were out sipping $20 Manhattans and discussing the latest issue of The New Yorker while a few of us sat on the couch watching free cage fights and loathing ourselves. It’s cool. You know what you did was wrong, and you came back home to us. We forgive you, and we’ll give you the gist of what went down.
It only took three minutes and fifty four seconds to send ten weeks of buildup crashing to the mat. The bout between Tony Ferguson and Ramsey Nijem was competitive, with both men finding a home for their hands, but Ferguson was able to employ his collegiate wrestling experience and the time spent with Lesnar’s camp after the show to dictate the fight and set the pace. Following a couple of successful takedowns, Ferguson flipped Ramsey’s switch with a left hook and Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter crowned its asshole champion.
Pettis, and his hopes at a title shot, come crashing down (pic: MMAFightNews.net)
Judging from the sparse commentary throughout last night’s live blog, most of you were out sipping $20 Manhattans and discussing the latest issue of The New Yorker while a few of us sat on the couch watching free cage fights and loathing ourselves. It’s cool. You know what you did was wrong, and you came back home to us. We forgive you, and we’ll give you the gist of what went down.
It only took three minutes and fifty four seconds to send ten weeks of buildup crashing to the mat. The bout between Tony Ferguson and Ramsey Nijem was competitive, with both men finding a home for their hands, but Ferguson was able to employ his collegiate wrestling experience and the time spent with Lesnar’s camp after the show to dictate the fight and set the pace. Following a couple of successful takedowns, Ferguson flipped Ramsey’s switch with a left hook and Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter crowned its asshole champion.
About 10 seasons ago that would have meant something, perhaps that a new player had arrived in the Welterweight division, but these days it just means that the TUF champ was simply the best fighter in the house, and that’s assuming that the best fighter didn’t succumb to injury during the hectic fight schedule. The legendary “six figure contract” carries little guarantee of future employment, but at least Ferguson left with the $40k “Knock Out of the Night” bonus in his pocket. So where does Ferguson go from here? In true Ultimate Fighter fashion, he said a drop in weight class is likely in his future. Then again, he also called out fellow TUF champion and resident UFC hipster Amir Sadollah, so who knows.
In the “co-main event”, Clay Guida was able to take Anthony Pettis off of his feet and reduce his highlight-reel style to a few momentary bursts of gif-worthy brilliance. Pettis took a major gamble in accepting this fight, preferring to stay active and risk losing his title shot rather than sitting idly by and waiting for a turn that may never come. It’s hard to imagine a fight so active resulting in so little damage. Guida used his strong wrestling base to put Pettis on his back each and every round, but it was all he could do to avoid the constant submission threats of Showtime’s active guard. Guida’s major offensive weapon, outside of his takedowns, came in the form of shoulder strikes from the guard and half guard while pressed against the cage. It was enough to secure the decision from the judges, but not enough to earn him the title shot that would have gone to a victorious Pettis. Dana White said post-fight that Guida is still behind Jim Miller in line for a shot at the belt. In short, Pettis will need to work on his wrestling to flourish in the UFC’s lightweight division, and Guida still needs to work on everything else.
In other action…
Ed Herman turned the longest layoff into the evening’s quickest win with his 48-second TKO of Tim Credeur. It was an exciting and much-needed win for “Short Fuse”, but with both men coming off of two year absences it tells us little about how he’ll fair against other competition or how he’s recovered from multiple knee surgeries.
My how far Josh Grispi has fallen. Once lined up to challenge Jose Aldo for his belt, “The Fluke” has now lost both of his matches in the UFC. George Roop also came into the bout 0-1 in the UFC, but he looked solid last night in his return to the win column.
The evening’s “Fight of the Night” was a throwdown between Light Heavyweights Kyle Kingsbury and Fabio Maldonado. Kingsbury landed some big knees from the clinch, but ate more than his fair share of digging body shots for his effort. Kingsbury left the cage with his fourth consecutive UFC win and an eye that looked possessed by demons.
Danny Downes was outgunned on the feet, and Danny Downes was outgunned on the mat, but damn Danny Downes is tough. Downes took a beating and probably should have left the cage with a detached arm, but he hung in there for the long haul in what ended up serving as a showcase fight for Jeremy Stephens.
I wouldn’t expect to see much more out of the TUF Class of Season 13. The undercard bouts featuring the non-finalists didn’t give much reason to believe anyone will be making an impact in the UFC. Chris Cope did look improved, and you never really know who’s a diamond in the rough, but even the shallow end of the Welterweight pool may prove too deep for these guys to tread. For some, this may represent their first chance to train full time with a credible gym; they’d better make the most of the opportunity.
LAS VEGAS – Not yet an hour after winning the biggest fight of his career, on the biggest stage, Tony Ferguson was ready to start thinking about who’s next.
Ferguson knocked out Ramsey Nijem in the first round to win the Season 13 title of “The Ultim…
LAS VEGAS – Not yet an hour after winning the biggest fight of his career, on the biggest stage, Tony Ferguson was ready to start thinking about who’s next.
Ferguson knocked out Ramsey Nijem in the first round to win the Season 13 title of “The Ultimate Fighter.” And with his new trophy in front of him, a few minutes after learning he would get an extra $40,000 for his Knockout of the Night, Ferguson said he wants to face TUF 7 champion Amir Sadollah.
“I saw Amir Sadollah, and I know that he was a pretty big guy from ‘The Ultimate Fighter,'” Ferguson said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I think that would be a pretty good little start, right there.”
But Ferguson, though just one fight into his UFC career, got the next part down pat when he said he would fight whomever the UFC wants.
“It doesn’t matter who you put in front of me,” Ferguson said. “I have great coaches and I’m going to be ready for any kind of fight. It took me a bit to get used to being in front of everybody, but I think I belong here – and I’ve got the trophy now to prove it.”
Ferguson was part of Brock Lesnar’s team on this season of TUF, and after the show finished taping, Lesnar invited Ferguson to his DeathClutch camp in Minnesota to train.
Ferguson said his plan was to utilize takedowns to control the pace of the fight – so even he may have been surprised with his knockout bomb.
“I knew he was expecting me to go for a takedown on him. That’s what we were practicing,” Ferguson said. “I’ve always had hands, but I kind of forgot that I was a wrestler. As you saw on my first fight in the house, I got taken down twice. I knew he was going to put a lot of pressure on me, so I took that inside. I had my takedowns to try and slow it down a little more. He caught me a couple times and I had to shake it off.”
Nijem, too, was taken by surprise with the knockout punch.
“I was ready to take the fight wherever I needed to and felt very prepared for it,” Nijem said. “That shot caught me completely off guard – I didn’t see it coming. If he didn’t land that, then who knows what would have happened. I was starting to rush things and I got myself in trouble, and it gave Tony the opportunity he needed to get the win.”
Ferguson (11-2, 1-0 UFC) said despite the ability to make lightweight, and a willingness to do so, his preference would be to stay at welterweight.
“Lightweight is in my future,” Ferguson said. “Wherever Dana wants me to fight. I wrestled in college at 165. But I’m comfortable where I’m at right now. I like food. I like eating. I could see myself going to lightweight, but I love welterweight.”
Tony Ferguson
I’ve always wondered what Ultimate Fighter winners do with their cut-glass trophies. It looks like something you might get for being the most improved player on a high school water polo team, so I’d be surprised if too many recipients have it displayed prominently in their homes.
LAS VEGAS – Not yet an hour after winning the biggest fight of his career, on the biggest stage, 