UFC lightweight Tony Ferguson has denied the claim he turned down a short-notice fight against top-five contender Islam Makhachev.
In the main event of UFC Vegas 49 this past weekend, fans were set to witness a clash between Makhachev and fellow elite 155lber Beneil Dariush, with a shot at gold expected to be at stake.
Unfortunately, the Iranian-American was forced out less than 10 days before the February 26 showdown after suffering a broken fibula in training. In his place stepped up the always-game veteran, Bobby Green.
During fight week ahead of the card, which took palace at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Makhachev implied Ferguson turned down an offer to step in and replace Dariush, who Ferguson had fallen to a defeat against in his last outing at UFC 262 in May 2021.
Now, in a post on Twitter, “El Cucuy” has provided a different take, claiming he was more than willing to enter the cage at UFC Vegas 49, but never received a call to do so from the UFC.
“We Were Offered To Fight @RdosAnjosMMA On Short Notice For #ufc272 We We’re Moar Than Ready To Step In And Save The Fight & Perform ? We Were Also Ready To Beat Fatheads Primo @MAKHACHEVMMA This Past Weekend But No Call Was Received, TUF?Times ?? -CSO- ????? # ?”
Interestingly, Ferguson also revealed he’d been offered a short-notice clash with Rafael dos Anjos at this weekend’s UFC 272 pay-per-view. The Brazilian former champion was set to face Rafael Fiziev in the co-main event, but the Kyrgyzstani was forced out after testing positive for COVID-19 at the start of fight week.
With the search underway for a replacement, it appears Ferguson is an option. However, he’ll seemingly be battling Makhachev for a place on the card.
Fresh off a first-round TKO victory over Green, a triumph that marked his 10th straight success, the Dagestani threw his name into the hat for a 170-pound contest against long-time rival dos Anjos. It remains to be seen which direction the promotion will choose to go in.
Who would you rather see step in to face Rafael dos Anjos, Tony Ferguson or Islam Makhachev?
