Tony Ferguson is hoping to get Conor McGregor or Dustin Poirier next.
Heading into his bout against Justin Gaethje at UFC 249, many expected the former UFC Interim Lightweight Champion to beat Gaethje and finally move onto fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov at a later date; however, Gaethje ended up getting a statement win over Ferguson and he’ll now challenge for the 155-pound title in October.
So where does this leave Tony Ferguson?
The 36-year-old is number three in the top 15 rankings and Ferguson is game to fight Dustin Poirier and even Conor McGregor, who remains No. 4 in the rankings despite being retired:
“They’re both decent fighters. They’re both good,” Ferguson told ESPN. “We’re all elite and top five for a reason. … So far as fights go, if Conor wants to fight, I’m down for that. I’d love to fight a southpaw. I’d do really well. I knocked Aaron Riley’s jaw in that one on accident, so I mean, when it comes down to me fighting standup, you gotta remember when I fought Edson Barboza. It’s a lot different. This mix and matching kind of stuff like that, if it does happen again, cool. I’m already used to it.
“Doesn’t matter. Opponent switches, COVID, anything else wants to pop up, we’re used to it now. You want to give me Conor, you give me Conor. You want to give me Poirier, we’ll make it happen, and then we’ll fight for the winner of the Gaethje and Khabib fight.”
Ferguson lists McGregor, Khabib, and Poirier as the fights he’s currently aiming for due to the athletic respect he has for all three men:
“I would love to compete against Khabib, Poirier, McGregor,” Ferguson said. “Those are the three right there. Why? Talent-wise, that’s why. Not because of any other ways or means. Because of the talent and the athletic respect that I have for their talent that they have in this sport.”