Former mixed martial artist Dan Hardy is one of the newest individuals to point out the problem in Tony Ferguson’s preparation for his UFC 296 versus Paddy Pimblett. As “The Outlaw” believes, “El Cucuy” needs legendary boxing trainer Freddie Roach and not the former Navy SEAL David Goggins.
Ferguson is hoping to break his losing streak by defeating the young Pimblett this coming weekend. With many believing that it is now the time for the 39-year-old to retire after six straight losses, winning this bout is a much-needed victory for Ferguson. To prepare for the fight, the fighter asked for Goggins’ assistance.
Many fellow fighters, nonetheless, question Ferguson’s decision to choose Goggins, underlining that the fighter doesn’t need cardio training but something else. Daniel Cormier first commented on the matter after a video of the fighter vomiting during the training surfaced. Bobby Green later followed it, saying Ferguson’s training needs “has nothing to do with his heart or his cardio.”
Now, Hardy is echoing the comments but with more concrete details about the actual training Ferguson needs. According to the former fighter, the training time spent with Goggins is nothing but a waste.
“I think Tony’s mis-invested his energies in this training camp, like, he didn’t need cardio or heart,” Hardy told Submission Radio. “If one thing is going to stay with Tony Ferguson, it is those two things. He’s losing his ability to react, you know, he’s losing his ability to move at speed. These are the things that he’s going to struggle with in the fight, and he’s not done anything from what we’ve seen training with David Goggins to bolster these things, you know?”
In line with this, Hardy named Roach the perfect coach Ferguson should have hired. Aside from being a former boxer, Roach rose to fame with his work with Oscar De La Hoya, Amir Khan, Miguel Cotto, and Manny Pacquiao.
“He’s not doing any kind of smart plyometric training,” Hardy explained. “He’s not doing any reactionary drills from what I can tell. He’s certainly not on any really, you know, simple technical basics, which is really what he needs, you know? He would’ve been better working with someone like Freddie Roach, someone that’s going to make him sit down on his punches and move one foot after the next.”
Unfortunately for Ferguson, UFC 296 is just days away. As such, despite the opinion of fans and fighters, Goggins’ work on Ferguson will ultimately determine what will be next on the fighter’s UFC record and career.
