‘A relief to move on’: Tony Ferguson discusses post-UFC career

Tony Ferguson is eager to grasp new opportunities now that his run in the UFC has come to a close.

‘El Cucuy’ was regarded as one of the most exciting lightweights in the sport amid a run between 2013 and 2019 which saw him win 12 straight fights in the UFC’s 155-pound division and claimed an interim world title. However, repeated injuries blighted his career including a knee malady that caused the removal of the interim lightweight championship from his grasp.

In January, it was confirmed that Ferguson’s run with the UFC had come to an end some months after a submission loss to Michael Chiesa in August in what was his eighth defeat in a row — a record in the organisation.

Ferguson joined the ranks of the Global Fight League (GFL) in January and is expected to fight Dillon Danis in May. And ahead of this new chapter, he is keen to draw a line through the last one.

“I have to tell you, I packed up all my UFC stuff, I put it into bags, and it was the hardest f*cking thing I had to do,” he told Ariel Helwani this week, as reported by MMA Junkie.

“It was a couple of days where it took time for me to be able to adjust. I put everything in big storage bags, and I was ready to move on. I went into ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ with the purpose of winning a fat check so I can help my family out, my grandma and everything, and I ended up getting a contract. So, this whole entire process has never been a disappointment.

He added: “But what it has been is a learning experience of how, one, about how I go about my business. Two, about how I treat my close circle. Three, about how I want to plan for the future. Right now where we’re at in this stage, it’s so amazing that there is an opportunity for a lot of other people to display their things and new clothes and a new jersey and a new name on the shirt. It’s such a great feeling to have and a relief to move on.

“No bad blood anywhere, I think this is great.”