Decked out in what he described as a “Sub-Zero” (Mortal Kombat) mask, Tony Ferguson reflected Thursday on a very different fight week ahead of his May 9 showdown with Justin Gaethje. “It’s not bad. Kind of quiet,” he said. “We’re focused. We’re here for UFC 249.”
Just a few days prior, Ferguson and Gaethje had what will likely be their only interaction prior to Saturday night’s main event — a media conference call. The tone was cordial, and Ferguson remained respectful at the virtual media day on Thursday.
Still, he sees crucial flaws in his opponent. “I’ve watched a lot of film. He’s got a lot of holes in his game,” said Ferguson. “I’m a veteran in this sport. I’ve got 12 wins in a row, only because I lost to Michael Johnson. I’m not planning on losing any time soon. My work ethic speaks for itself. I’m an Ultimate Fighter winner. In order to be the best, you’ve got to beat everybody. It’s a round-robin style tournament. Justin Gaethje’s next.”
Gaethje raised some eyebrows at the aforementioned media call when he requested a broken nose from Ferguson during their fight. Preferably by way of elbow. To hear “The Highlight” tell it, he just wants his already busted nose fixed, on the UFC’s dime.
Ferguson instead believes that “he just doesn’t want me to punch him in the stomach.”
“I have nothing against the kid. He’s awesome,” the fighter known as “El Cucuy” went on to say. “He’s got ‘the human highlight’ for his nickname for a reason. He’s a tough, game opponent. But the guy’s that he fought, he got my leftovers. He went over there and finished them, but they were already broken. Any time I’ve ever fought an opponent, they just break mentally, and physically, and spiritually. They just can’t handle it inside that octagon. Gaethje’s not going to be anything different from these guys. I’m not going to hold back.”
Still, given the pair sit atop the UFC 249 card, with an interim title on the line (one Ferguson has already claimed once), the tone was light.
Ferguson instead reserved his ire for the lightweight champion he called “Fathead Khabib.”
“He didn’t want to fight. He ran away like a dog with his tail between his legs,” Ferguson said of the UFC lightweight champion, who returned to his native Russia as the coronavirus pandemic spread. “Same thing with Conor [McGregor]. ‘I’m going to be next, I’m going to be next,’ is what everybody said. But where the f*ck are they at? Obviously they’re back home trying to quarantine, obviously we’re here crushing quarantine.”
Asked if he thinks the fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov will ever happen, now that it’s been cancelled a fifth time, Ferguson fired back by saying “I don’t give a sh*t. To me that guy doesn’t even exist. The fight that’s going to happen is at UFC 249.”
Tony Ferguson faces Justin Gaethje in the UFC 249 main event on May 9 at the Vystars Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The event airs live on PPV following televised and online prelims on ESPN/ESPN+ (TSN in Canada).
