Tony Ferguson has explained why he has not officially said yes to a new opponent yet for UFC 249 after Khabib Nurmagomedov’s withdrawal.
There’s still a great deal of uncertainty in the air regarding whether or not UFC 249 is going to happen, with the increasingly prevalent opinion being that the whole thing should just be called off in the name of protecting the health of everyone involved.
Despite that, Tony Ferguson has had some rather unflattering things to say about Khabib Nurmagomedov after it was revealed that “The Eagle” will not be leaving his home country of Russia in order to take part in the event in the United States.
Ferguson to @arielhelwani on why he hasn’t accepted a new foe: "We don't know where the location is at. I'm not gonna say yes or no to an opponent unless we have a location. If we don't have a location, how do you expect me to prepare?"
— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) April 1, 2020
When asked by Ariel Helwani why he hasn’t accepted a new opponent for 249, Ferguson had the following to say.
“We don’t know where the location is at,” he said. “I’m not gonna say yes or no to an opponent unless we have a location. If we don’t have a location, how do you expect me to prepare?”
Some fans have immediately started criticizing Ferguson for this, claiming that it makes him seem a little bit hypocritical after he was vocally dismissive of Khabib for not being able to get to fight night.
Nurmagomedov vs Ferguson is the fight that the combat sports world has been clamoring for, and they’ve been doing so for years now. With this marking the fifth time that it has been called off in some way, it seems only logical to think that UFC president Dana White will try and book it a sixth time at the conclusion of Ramadan.
Many fans have been pleading with Tony Ferguson not to accept another fight against someone like Justin Gaethje, and it appears as if he’s going to listen to that advice.
Do you think we’ll see Tony Ferguson fight on April 18?
This article first appeared on BJPENN.com on 4/2/2020.