The loser of four straight fights, former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson found himself in a must-win situation with welterweight veteran Li Jingliang at UFC 279.
Ferguson and ‘The Leech’ will take co-main event honors on September 10th, which needs some boost given the lack of name value below Khamzat Chimaev and Nate Diaz. For Ferguson, for his part, has switched sides and is now fighting at welterweight for the first time since winning The Ultimate Fighter in 2013.
On the MMA Hour show, Chael Sonnen expressed his distaste for the fight, even though it was more of a Ferguson rival instead. Not Tony
“I don’t like it,” Sonam said (via MMA fight).
“You want to talk about Charles Oliveira, you want to talk about what a big star he is – they say his fight with [Justin] Gasjay is the biggest pay-per-view of the year, let alone the weight this year. A battle between the [provisional] champion and the undisputed [champion], you also tell me that Oliveira-Gaethje is number one? Oliveira doesn’t exist, that belt doesn’t exist, and the story doesn’t exist, if Tony Ferguson in the attic hadn’t put down the ladder for Oliveira to climb up.
“Now we’re going to bring back Ferguson, great story, he stuck with it, he traded camp, he did things differently and you gave I don’t know ‘leech’ [Jingliang]. I don’t know if it’s his nickname or his name, I don’t want to be a dick. I’m assuming you call a person a leech, as he claims – I don’t know who we’re across from Tony Ferguson or how we’re supposed to pretend it’s important. “
Jing Liang (19-7) has been with the UFC since 2014 and has amassed an 11-5 record inside the Octagon. He is in the He won last month’s UFC Long Island card with a TKO over Muslim Salihov and is currently ranked 14th in the official UFC welterweight ranking. Granted, he’s not the most high-profile opponent Ferguson has faced recently, which Seems to be part of the reason Sonam wasn’t interested in the game.
“What would happen if ‘Leech’ won? Sonnen said.
“I don’t think there should be a press conference,” Sonnen continued. “I don’t think it’s worth it.” It’s the kind of fight where you’d lay out the card and then you’d mention it. “
Well, if ‘The Leech’ does this and wins, it could be the end of Ferguson’s UFC career. Please on September 10th Tune in to see how much “El Cucuy” has left as they look for their first win since 2019.
