During his time in the UFC’s lightweight division, Tony Ferguson fought many of the top names.
The incredible win streak of ‘El Cucuy’ led him to the interim lightweight title which should have seen his path cross with Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Both men were at the top of their games around the same time but fans never got to see Ferguson and Nurmagomedov face off in one of the most highly anticipated matchups in the sport.
He also didn’t get the opportunity to fight the other major star that was competing at 155 pounds at the same time despite several Conor McGregor call outs.
Having parted ways with the UFC earlier this year, there’s one other name that the former lightweight boogeyman would like to go back and face if he could travel back in time.
Tony Ferguson says that after Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor, he’d run back his fight with Justin Gaethje
At UFC 249, Tony Ferguson’s winning streak was ended by Justin Gaethje following a one-sided fight that saw ‘The Highlight’ win the interim title.
‘El Cucuy’ was originally booked to unify the belts against Khabib Nurmagomedov but when ‘The Eagle’ couldn’t make the date due to the travel restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ferguson chose to stay on the card to risk his spot as the next in line.
The decisive loss would end up being a huge turning point in his career with the former champion going from one of the division’s greatest winning streaks to the longest losing streak in UFC history with 8 consecutive defeats.
Ferguson recently told The Schmo in an interview that Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor would still be at the top of his hitlist if he could go back in time for one more fight.
After that, he would choose to redo the fight with Gaethje so that he could correct some of the mistakes he made and alter the events that played out as a result of the outcome.
“Oh son of a b—-, you named them both. Yeah, of course it would be a combination plate of McNuggets and Tiramisu, it really would. But, if I could go back and fight another time, it would be Gaethje and I would actually give a s— and go back and fight that one.
“I wouldn’t go toe-to-toe, I would fight my fight, the way that I was supposed to and change the future and see how it would go from that point. But, I don’t have that want to be able to go back that far before I could see what that would change.”
Tony Ferguson was an absolute monster at 155 pounds before his loss to Justin Gaethje
Tony Ferguson’s drop in form after his loss to Justin Gaethje was so staggering that if he was able to go back and redo UFC 249, who knows what it could have led to.
His UFC career ended in disappointing fashion but before this career-altering defeat, ‘El Cucuy’ was one of the most dangerous and entertaining fighters on the roster.
Ferguson went undefeated from 2013-2020, bouncing back from a loss to Michael Johnson in 2012 by going on an absolute tear.
| Event & Date | Opponent | Result |
| UFC 238, 2019 | Donald Cerrone | TKO – Round 2 |
| UFC 229, 2018 | Anthony Pettis | TKO – Round 2 |
| UFC 216, 2017 | Kevin Lee | Submission – Round 3 |
| The Ultimate Fighter Latin America 3 Finale, 2016 | Rafael dos Anjos | Unanimous Decision |
| UFC Fight Night 91, 2016 | Lando Vannata | Submission – Round 2 |
| The Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale, 2015 | Edson Barboza | Submission – Round 2 |
| UFC Fight Night 71, 2015 | Josh Thomson | Unanimous Decision |
| UFC 184, 2015 | Gleison Tibau | Submission – Round 1 |
| UFC 181, 2014 | Abel Trujillo | Submission – Round 2 |
| UFC 177, 2014 | Danny Castillo | Split Decision |
| UFC 173, 2014 | Katsunori Kikuno | KO – Round 1 |
| UFC 166, 2013 | Mike Rio | Submission – Round 1 |
Though Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor did end up producing the biggest fight in UFC history when they collided, Ferguson not sharing the cage with either man is frankly astonishing.