When it comes to his skillset, former interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson hasn’t let his losing skid affect his confidence.
Ferguson achieved an unwanted record in his return to action at this past weekend’s UFC Fight Night, falling to the longest run of defeats in the promotion’s history. After closing out his 2023 with a decision loss to Paddy Pimblett, his latest setback came against Michael Chiesa up at welterweight.
The bout didn’t reach the first horn, with “El Cucuy” being taken down and submitted by way of rear-naked choke in just under four minutes by Chiesa, who entered the contest on a losing skid of his own.
In the immediate aftermath, it appeared a retirement announcement branded long overdue by many in the community was on the way. But while Ferguson did lay down one glove, it didn’t take long for him to seemingly commit to the continuation of his career.
That’s seemingly down to a belief that he can still compete inside the Octagon, in spite of what his record since 2020 would suggest. And among other things, “El Cucuy” hasn’t lost confidence in his standup game…
Ferguson: Chiesa Didn’t Want Any Of My Striking
During his post-fight press conference on Saturday, Ferguson reflected on his outing in the Middle East and record eighth consecutive defeat inside the Octagon.
While he admitted to feeling “slow and sluggish” in the grappling realm, where his demise ultimately came against Chiesa, Ferguson insisted he remains a major threat on the feet, having returned to sparring and pad work in training.
“There’s a lot of things I need to work on,” Ferguson said. “We did a lot of sparring. You could see that out there; I felt pretty good on my feet. … I felt normal in there for a second. … There’s a lot of things that I can and can’t do. … This whole entire camp, I had just got back into sparring. … We just started throwing pads again.
“When I went out there and I hit Chiesa, he didn’t want to stand and bang. Not a lot of people want to stand and bang with me,” Ferguson added.
It would appear likely that Ferguson plans on further proving that in another fight down the line. While he noted discussions will take place with his family, “El Cucuy” was quick to walk back his initial half-retirement inside the Octagon.
