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Tony Ferguson suffered a tough loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 279, as he racked up his first submission loss since 2009. Daniel Cormier, a former double champ and UFC Hall of Famer who retired in 2020, believes that Ferguson may be nearing the end of the line.
Tony Ferguson has now lost his last five bouts after losing just three of his first 28 fights. His fall from grace has been drastic and he no longer looks close to the fighter he was in his prime.
Daniel Cormier believes that it may be time for Ferguson to hang up his gloves. Stating the same in an appearance on The DC & RC show, Cormier said:
(starting at the 13:50 mark):
"Ferguson just does not seem to have it anymore, but he does not seem to have the self-awareness to understand it. He just doesn't really want to walk away from the game and I get it. It's hard to walk away, but he just doesn't have it anymore man."
Cormier continued to add that there may not be a potential opponent for Ferguson going forward:
"I honestly don't know who the UFC can match him up with anymore because if he'd have fought Li Jingliang, he would have lost to him. It would have probably been worse because Li would have hit him with big shots early so I just don't know who they can match this guy up with anymore."
Watch Daniel Cormier's full comments on Tony Ferguson below:
Tony Ferguson on retirement
Tony Ferguson has previously shared that he nearly considered retirement. Following the brutal front-kick knockout delivered by Michael Chandler at UFC 274, Ferguson noted that if he didn't have a good first round, he likely would have walked away from mixed martial arts.
While 'El Cucuy' was optimistic that a move to welterweight would help prolong his career, his loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 279 didn't leave much to be excited about.
Daniel Cormier has previously stated that he believes Ferguson is done competing as a top-level fighter. While many believed that his comments were due to the nature of his relationship with Khabib Nurmagomedov, who has been a long-time rival of Ferguson, it is hard to argue with him after watching 'El Cucuy' suffer his fifth consecutive defeat.
While all fighters' careers must come to an end, it would be great to see the former interim champion leave the sport with a victory. Leaving with five straight defeats is a tough way to go out for any fighter, particularly one with a prime as dominant as Ferguson's was.
Check out the respect shown to Tony Ferguson by Nate Diaz following UFC 279 below:
