After what he described as a seemingly forgettable experience during the UFC Athlete retreat, Al Iaquinta went on to call out Tony Ferguson on The MMA Hour. “El Cucuy” came in the crosshairs of Ragin’ Al after a matchup with Sage Northcutt was said to be scrapped.
Ferguson, for his part, is more keen on the idea of fighting Nate Diaz, and is not willing to “go backwards” in a fight against Iaquinta.
“He’s trying to promote himself, trying to make it big,” Ferguson said on last week’s MMA Hour episode (via MMA Fighting). “You’ve never heard this dude, not one time, call my name out. I’ve never called his name out. So obviously somebody got to him. So regardless, if he wants to fight, I’m not going to back down from a fight, but I already offered somebody a fight (Nate Diaz) and I’m not trying to go backwards. I’m moving forwards. I’m a champ. I’m a superstar. And I move like a superstar in that Octagon, and I expect somebody to move like that when they signed that dotted line with me.”
“Don’t give me an easy fight,” Ferguson continued. “I want somebody that’s worth it, that’s put in their time and put in the amount of effort. It’s not just about knockouts, son. This is mixed martial arts. It’s about finishing people. It’s about putting in that time, putting in all five rounds.”
Ferguson has not fought since November 2016. He was slated for an interim title fight at UFC 209 in March against Khabib Nurmagomedov, only for it to be cancelled by his supposed opponent’s weight cutting issues.
While his next fight date has not been determined, Ferguson still has his eyes on the 155-pound interim title. After which, he also intends to take care of his unfinished business with Khabib.
“I’m about to buy him a gift card for Dolce Diet,” Ferguson said of Nurmagomedov. “I’m about to tweet his ass and say, ‘hey fatty, you pick up a dietician yet?’ Because your ass needs to start worrying and thinking about me and start thinking about your future, because if you say that you’re not going to retire, the Boogeyman ain’t going nowhere, buddy. F—king Baba Yaga is coming after your ass. I’m the new John Wick still, and I don’t forget about that, because we got unfinished business.”
“But that’s at a later date. He’s not open, because he’s a little b-tch. He doesn’t want to fight before Ramadan. So, I’m not giving him any [criticism] for his religion, I’m not saying anything, but afterwards, I can’t wait. Let’s go. I want some of him.”
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