Tony Ferguson still dreams of fighting big names like Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov, but he has one former enemy he’s wanted to start over.
Once upon a time, “El Kukui” was one of the most feared men in the UFC’s lightweight division, winning a 12 straight fight and winning the tentative 155 pound title. However, his legendary run came to a stop that crashed in May 2020 when he stepped into the octagon for a collision with Justin Gesche at UFC 249.
After Gaethje gave Ferguson an absolute be-beat for over 23 minutes, umpire Herb Dean finally got enough of it and ruthlessly stopped a furious onslaught and Ferguson’s unbeaten streak.
Tony Ferguson hopes he can go back and change the way he fought Geshe
In a recent interview with Schmo, Ferguson was asked whether he could go back in time, who fought during his career, and whether names like McGregor and Nurmagomedov were potential suggestions from popular MMA interviewers.
“Yeah, you… you’ve named them both! Of course, it’s going to be a McNuggets and Tiramisu combination plate,” Ferguson said, referring to McGregor and Nurmagomedov. “It’s really going to happen. But if I can go back and fight another time, it’s going to be Gatche. And I’ll actually give an af*ck and fight it. I won’t go to my toes.
“But I don’t want it to go too far, but I was able to see what it would change. It’s pretty good. I’m just trying to keep the sport moving.”
Ferguson had no chance to compete with Conor McGregor, but he was actually booked to compete with Nurmagomedov more than five times between December 2015 and April 2020. Sadly, the battle never came to fruition for a variety of reasons.
Ferguson’s loss to Geshe was the first to become a straight eight-game losing streak. After suffering a first-round filing loss against Michael Chiesa in August 2024, the promotion eventually parted ways with a California native and ended a 13-year competition within the Octagon.