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Dana White: Conor McGregor Declined To Fight Tony Ferguson At UFC 249

White: McGregor Would Be In Gaethje’s Position Conor McGregor may not be “retired” now if he stepped in at UFC 249 last month. McGregor was expected to face the winner of the planned Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson title fight set to take place in April. The Irishman even previously claimed he was ready to […]

White: McGregor Would Be In Gaethje’s Position

Conor McGregor may not be “retired” now if he stepped in at UFC 249 last month.

McGregor was expected to face the winner of the planned Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson title fight set to take place in April. The Irishman even previously claimed he was ready to step in should either fighter pull out as he hoped to have an active 2020.

But with the circumstances that led to Nurmagomedov eventually having to pull out of the fight amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Ferguson eventually ended up battling Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title last month.

However, it could have easily been McGregor vs. Ferguson — if the former accepted the fight according to UFC president Dana White.

“Conor had the opportunity to slide into that spot [at UFC 249] if Khabib or Tony fell out,” White told ESPN’s First Take (via ESPN MMA). “He came back and said, ‘I’m not a replacement fighter. I’m not gonna do it.’

“He would be in that position right now if he took that fight. He didn’t, Gaethje did, so Gaethje gets it.”

Dana White claims Conor McGregor declined replacement opportunity that Justin Gaethje ended up taking.

(via @FirstTake) pic.twitter.com/rQkubmzjMz

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 9, 2020

Of course, whether McGregor could have left Ireland at the time also remains to be seen. Regardless, Gaethje is now expected to face Nurmagomedov in a title unification fight later this year.

McGregor, meanwhile, will have to wait if he wants a shot at the lightweight strap. And the fact that he didn’t get his wish of facing Gaethje in the summer ultimately contributed to his latest retirement.

What do you think of White’s claim?

Justin Gaethje Wasn’t Stunned At Tony Ferguson’s Chin, Doesn’t Understand Recent Knockouts

One of the biggest talking points of the interim lightweight title fight at UFC 249 earlier this month was how many of Justin Gaethje’s shots Tony Ferguson was able to take. Gaethje landed over 140 significant strikes, 100 of which were to the head, with many of them appearing to be fight-ending shots. However, Ferguson […]

One of the biggest talking points of the interim lightweight title fight at UFC 249 earlier this month was how many of Justin Gaethje’s shots Tony Ferguson was able to take.

Gaethje landed over 140 significant strikes, 100 of which were to the head, with many of them appearing to be fight-ending shots. However, Ferguson absorbed the large bulk of them until his body could take no more in the fifth round as referee Herb Dean called an end to the contest.

Regardless, “El Cucuy” was never knocked out cold and received heaps of praise for his chin, endurance and heart to take so much punishment. Given that Gaethje had previously knocked out his last three opponents in the first round, was he stunned at Ferguson’s durability?

He claims otherwise as he wasn’t thinking about that during the fight, even if there was one moment where he felt Ferguson would go to sleep. But at the same time, he also doesn’t understand how some of his punches ended up resulting in recent knockouts.

“In the fight, there’s no point where I even understand [how he’s taking those shots]. No,” Gaethje said on the Joe Rogan Experience when asked if he was stunned. “It was crazy. The shots I hit [James] Vick, [Edson] Barboza and [Donald] Cerrone with? I was so surprised they went to sleep. I didn’t understand why. I think it was position mostly. When I was hitting him [Ferguson] with some of those shots, especially the one when I came through and he was throwing an uppercut, I couldn’t believe he didn’t go to sleep with that.

“But I go back to the Michael Johnson fight when he hit me with that left hand, there was no reason for me not to go to sleep then so I haven’t figured that part of the equation out. … It was everything a knockout shot should be. I know how people go to sleep, I don’t know how people don’t go to sleep.”

It’s certainly an interesting topic.

What do you make of why some people go to sleep and others don’t with certain punches?

Eddie Bravo Says He Felt Off In Tony Ferguson’s Corner At UFC 249

Tony Ferguson’s coach Eddie Bravo admits something didn’t feel right while cornering “El Cucuy” at UFC 249. Ferguson collided with Justin Gaethje on May 9 for the interim UFC lightweight title. The bout served as the UFC 249 headliner. Ferguson ended up being stopped via fifth-round TKO. Eddie Bravo Doesn’t Think He Should’ve Cornered Ferguson […]

The post Eddie Bravo Says He Felt Off In Tony Ferguson’s Corner At UFC 249 appeared first on MMA News.

Eddie Bravo Says Tony Ferguson Is Back in Training After UFC 249 Loss

Eddie Bravo, the jiu-jitsu coach of former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson says his fighter is already back in training despite suffering a brutal beatdown at the hands of Justin Gaethje at UFC 249 last weekend. Ferguson was originally set to fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov for the undisputed lightweight championship at UFC 249 on […]

Ferguson was originally set to fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov for the undisputed lightweight championship at UFC 249 on April 18. The undefeated Russian was forced off the card due to travel issues and was replaced by Gaethje. The fight was then postponed and instead took place on May 9 at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.

In the fight, Gaethje dominated from start to finish. ‘The Highlight’ landed countless power punches on ‘El Cucuy’ who displayed immense bravery and a great chin. Ultimately referee Herb Dean stepped in and waved off the fight in the fifth and final round, although many believe he or Ferguson’s corner should have stopped the fight sooner.

Since the fight, Ferguson appears to be in good spirits. He has been posting positive messages on social media and was even seen dancing as he recovered from his injuries in the hospital.

Speaking on a recent episode of Joe Rogan’s Fight Companion podcast Bravo of 10^th Planet Jui-Jitsu revealed despite what UFC president Dana White and some others believe, Ferguson’s loss was nothing to do with back-to-back weight cuts, he said.

“I talked to Tony yesterday and he said it had nothing to do with the weight. The loss had nothing to do with his weight… Justin just fought an awesome fight man.”

Bravo went on to tell of his surprise at how well Ferguson is handling this loss. The lightweight contender is content and already back in training for his next fight.

“He’s already training, he was training today,” Bravo said, He’s ready to go back. It gave me chills listening to him last night. His champ shit only, that’s in his losses too. He’s like listen ‘everyone in the world is suffering financially and I got to go in there and make a whole bunch of money and my family is secure, so I lost technically but I won in life.’”

Former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub asked the renowned BJJ coach why he and the Ferguson corner didn’t throw in the towel, as it’s something he would have done in the later rounds.

“That crossed my mind but I never would have done it,” Bravo responded. “I have never been a head MMA coach ever in my life and never wanted to be, never wanted to be, and even to this day that’s not me.”

Are you excited to see Tony Ferguson fight again after hearing Eddie Bravo say he’s already back in training?

Coach: Tony Ferguson Needs Mental Break From MMA

Tony Ferguson’s boxing coach feels a mental break from MMA would benefit his fighter. Ferguson had his 12-fight winning streak snapped on May 9. “El Cucuy” traded leather with Justin Gaethje in the main event of UFC 249. The bout was …

The post Coach: Tony Ferguson Needs Mental Break From MMA appeared first on MMA News.

Stephen A. Smith Suggests Tony Ferguson, Justin Gaethje Didn’t Grapple Due To COVID-19

Smith Thinks Ferguson, Gaethje Didn’t Grapple Due To COVID-19 Fears ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith continues to make headlines in the world of mixed martial arts. Smith came under fire for his comments about Donald Cerrone’s performance in his defeat to Conor McGregor back in January — though he feels he was validated going by […]

Smith Thinks Ferguson, Gaethje Didn’t Grapple Due To COVID-19 Fears

ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith continues to make headlines in the world of mixed martial arts.

Smith came under fire for his comments about Donald Cerrone’s performance in his defeat to Conor McGregor back in January — though he feels he was validated going by recent comments.

His latest comments, however, are considerably harder to defend even for his most die-hard fans as he was discussing the UFC 249 headliner between Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje this past weekend.

Gaethje came out on top with a fifth-round TKO win after a back-and-forth war that saw no clinching, grappling or wrestling. In fact, there wasn’t even a single takedown attempt.

Smith, however, suggested that this was the case due to fears of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. You can watch the snippet below:

“There was so much striking, I was surprised there wasn’t a little bit more wrestling and what have you,” Smith said. “Then I remember with the coronavirus pandemic coming on and in my mind, my attitude is that guys were a bit reluctant to grapple unless necessary.”

Although both fighters are accomplished on the ground, very few expected them to engage there given their love of brawling.

So good luck to Smith if he comes under fire for these comments as well.

What do you make of Smith’s suggestion?