Despite his other loss and UFC CEO Dana White’s belief that it is time for him to retire, it seems Tony Ferguson is still not ready to exit the MMA cage. In his latest post after being defeated by Paddy Pimblett, the 39-year-old fighter suggested that fans could still hope to see him have another bout.
The bout between Ferguson and Pimblett concluded with the Briton defeating the American fighter via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at UFC 296. This latest loss brings Ferguson a seven-fight losing skid. With this and the fighter’s age, the talk about his retirement started making the rounds again. White didn’t mince words about this, directly stating that it might be the time now for the fighter to leave the career.
“I would love to see Tony retire,” White said during the UFC 296-post-fight press conference. “When you talk about a skid, you look at the guys he fought, too. That plays a factor into it, and how did he look right up until he lost? Tonight, Tony looked like he should retire.”
In a recent post, Ferguson didn’t directly respond to White’s opinion about the matter. Yet, “El Cucuy” hinted to fans that he might still consider having another fight after this one.
“Love my fans & supporters,” Ferguson wrote on Instagram. “You all are f*ckin’ fire. Met lots of you tonight, keep the faith MF’s. One foot in front of the other b*tches, remember what I said crew – Champ.”
While this should give fans hope to see the fighter in the MMA industry continuously, this doesn’t assure that the UFC would still hand Ferguson another match. When that happens, it might push the former interim UFC lightweight champ to find a new home to continue his goal. However, while there are other promotions and sports to consider, with Ferguson’s age and poor current record, such options might no longer be possible.
