Tony Ferguson announces return with video
Former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson took to social media to announce his return to fighting after a recent layoff. In the horror-thriller themed video, Ferguson clips several audio and video highlights of his most recent wins and his callouts of former champion Conor McGregor and current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“I’m Back MF’s” – Champ Shit Only 🇺🇸🏆🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/NR08ef1072
— Tony Ferguson (@TonyFergusonXT) May 6, 2019
With Nurmagomedov rumored to be scheduled for a title defense with current interim champion Dustin Poirier this fall, Ferguson will have other top lightweight contenders to choose from, including McGregor. Unbeaten since 2012, Ferguson is currently riding an 11-fight winning streak which has seen him beat the likes of Anthony Pettis, Kevin Lee, Rafael dos Anjos, and Edson Barboza. Ferguson defeated Lee to become the interim lightweight champion back at UFC 216 and had been scheduled to face Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 223 until a knee injury forced him to withdraw from the fight, leading the UFC to strip him of the interim title.
The last time Ferguson was inside the Octagon, he defeated former champion Anthony Pettis at UFC 229 by TKO (corner stoppage), on the same night that Nurmagomedov successfully defended his title against McGregor. Following his victory in October of 2018, Ferguson was sidelined as concerns with his mental health came out after his wife filed an order of protection against him, which she later withdrew after Ferguson met with doctors.
With the posting of his return, Ferguson should have received clearance by both his doctors and UFC officials which paves the way for his return to the Octagon. Among the elite lightweights in the world, there are plenty of possible opponents for Tony Ferguson in his return. While he didn’t specifically call out any specific opponent, the likes of Justin Gaethje, Conor McGregor, Donald Cerrone, Al Iaquinta, are just a few names that he could possibly be matched with in his return.
