If interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson can somehow hand undefeated bulldozer Khabib Nurmagomedov his first defeat in the main event of April 7’s UFC 223, ‘El Cucuy’ could finally move on to a title unification bout (or something like that) with absent champion Conor McGregor.
Yet while that’s the biggest carrot currently being dangled in the MMA world, it’s far from guaranteed that McGregor will face Ferguson or McGregor no matter who wins the awaited fight in Brooklyn, New York.
The polarizing Irishman has drawn the ire of much of the collective MMA fanbase after not defending either the lightweight nor featherweight titles since he won the 145-pound strap back in 2015, and he’s recently chosen to enjoy the spoils of his monstrous payday to box Floyd Mayweather last August. That fight earned ‘The Notorious’ a reported $100 million dollar haul, and so it’s hardly a surprise to hear roars of him potentially facing Mayweather again, this time in the octagon.
His pending trilogy match with Nate Diaz will always be around, too, so Ferguson or Nurmagomedov could be left out in the cold, even if they become the official – or something – champion at UFC 223. Ferguson has long led his #defendorvacate charge online, but during a recent media luncheon yesterday (Thurs. March 29, 2018), ‘El Cucuy’ used an old-school video game reference to describe McGregor’s rise to stardom, a path he called easy to the point of cheating in a certain sense (via MMA Fighting):
“Conor used the Game Genie to get to where he’s at,” Ferguson said Thursday. “Now if you play video games all the time and you’re a real gamer, you’re not going to use the Game Genie, you’re not going to use the codes. You’re going to go on there and get your ass kicked and you’re going to play it again.
“When I used the words that Conor used the Game Genie, I said that he talked his way into it,” Ferguson said. “Which I’m not bashing. But I’m saying that he used a method that not a lot of people get to use. Because when we get into the fight game, we get into it, not to do this (makes hand-talking gesture). I’m blessed with that. I speak what’s real. … I’ve earned my way here. I don’t want anyone else carrying my torch because that torch is heavy.”
An obscure throwback for sure, but also one that might make some sense when unpacked considering McGregor beat Dennis Siver to earn his title shot against Jose Aldo in 2015.
Regardless, McGregor’s mouth has earned him the throne atop MMA’s most revered names, even if he hasn’t fought for almost two years. Despite that fact, McGregor’s boasts on social media still generate headlines, even if a rapidly growing contingent of MMA faithful are growing tired of his all flash and no substance style as of late.
So Ferguson knows he may or may not get the fight, and isn’t apologetic for the accusations he just leveled at ‘The Notorious.’ To him, people need to get off their phones and social media and do something else with their lives:
“I said he used the Game Genie,” Ferguson said. ”Everybody is so uptight worried about what everyone else thinks. Stop. Unplug, go out. Do something with your life. Get off of this sh*t (makes motion like scrolling through a cell phone). Go do something.”
Sound advice without a doubt, but there’s also little doubt that a heavy social media campaign will most likely be required to get the fight with McGregor even if he does defeat Nurmagomedov in two weeks’ time.
Do you agree with Ferguson saying McGregor was gifted an easy road to stardom, and if they do one day meet, will he back up that talk in the octagon?
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