Tony Ferguson prepares to fight Justin Gaethje prior to their Interim lightweight title fight during UFC 249 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on May 09, 2020 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
Tony Ferguson was mauled by Justin Gaethje at UFC 249
Tony Ferguson might have lost the interim UFC Lightweight title at UFC 249, but he still ended up earning a lot of respect.
The American came into the fight with a 12-match winning streak. However, Justin Gaethje had scouted his opponent really well.
Gaethje dominated the fight and landed some lusty blows to Ferguson. However, El Cucuy never actually was knocked down and it was the referee who brought an end to the fight in the fifth round.
Truth be told, the fight could have been stopped earlier as Gaethje destroyed Ferguson’s face.
Ferguson’s eyes were swollen and he took some massive hits to the head too. The full extent of the damage was visible later on as El Cucuy shared a crazy video from the hospital.
Ferguson was seen dancing with two black eyes and an IV drip too. He continued being the enigma he is and suggested that the discharge from the hospital would come soon.
Initially, Ferguson was to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov for the Lightweight title. However, the Russian is stuck in his home country and could not make it to UFC 249.
That opened the door for Gaethje and he took this chance with both arms. Gaethje is now the interim champion and he should fight Khabib for the undisputed title.
However, Ferguson seems to be out of the title picture for now. This would be a huge blow in his legacy as he has never held the undisputed title.
He was the interim champion once but has never held the main title before. Ferguson will still go down as one of the best Lightweights in UFC history, but a star without the main title in his CV.
Jon Jones takes offence to Dominick Reyes’ dog fight comments
(Watch) Controversy reigns supreme as Henry Cejudo beats Dominick Cruz at UFC 249
Twitter reacts as Henry Cejudo shocks the world by announcing retirement
Follow our dedicated UFC page for instant UFC news and updates
