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Joe Rogan has voiced concerns about Tony Ferguson's apparent decline, attributing it to the visible erosion of his longstanding pre-fight octagon ritual.
Ferguson is gearing up for a lightweight showdown against Paddy Pimblett at UFC 296, the final pay-per-view event of the year set to take place on December 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Despite once enjoying a 12-fight win streak and claiming the interim lightweight title in 2016, Ferguson is currently going through a rough patch. 'El Cucuy' has suffered six consecutive losses. In his most recent outing, he was submitted by Bobby Green at UFC 291 in July.
During a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, the veteran UFC commentator delved into Ferguson's declining career:
"Fitness is important, but sparring is very important too. And timing is important, as are training and technique, drilling, and being prepared for specific things. When fighters get older, they can't move this well... There's a bunch of sh*t that you don't see."
Rogan further alluded to a widely circulated video depicting 'El Cucuy' visibly encountering challenges with his pre-fight octagon rituals in recent times:
"There's an old video of Tony Ferguson when he used to enter the octagon, how he used to move versus now. In his old days when Tony Ferguson was on his undefeated run, he was on the baddest f**king mountain. An elite fighter can only operate at their highest level for so many years, there's a window of time when you operate at the highest RPMs."
Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (1:14):
Tom Aspinall predicts Paddy Pimblett's triumph over Tony Ferguson
Tom Aspinall is rooting for his countryman Paddy Pimblett in his upcoming bout with Tony Ferguson. Pimblett is the younger of the two lightweights, and Aspinall believes it will have a significant effect on the result this weekend.
During a recent conversation with TNT Sports, the newly crowned UFC heavyweight champion stated:
"I think Paddy should win this fight. I think Paddy is younger, he is fresher! Tony Ferguson’s got a lot of miles on the clock and I think that that’s going to show in this fight. I think Paddy’s younger and fresher. Paddy’s got a strange style to cope with and as does Tony, to be fair! It’s hard to prepare for both guys but I think just Paddy being younger and fresher and I believe Tony’s on like a six-fight losing streak, is it? Yeah, I’ll definitely back Paddy on this one."
Check out Tom Aspinall's comments below:
