Michael Bisping on rapid decline of Tony Ferguson

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Tony Ferguson

Michael Bisping knows a thing or too about battling through adversity and he’s offering some advice for UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson.

Discussing Ferguson’s recent loss to Charles Oliveira on a recent episode of the Believe You Me podcast, Bisping expressed concern over the damage that Ferguson has taken throughout his career and the unfavorable results he’s seen in his past two outings against Oliveira and Justin Gaethje.

“Against Justin Gaethje he got out-struck and then against Charles Oliveira he essentially for the most part got out-grappled,” Bisping said (h/t MMA News). “I’m kind of concerned for Tony Ferguson. Of course, he doesn’t want my sympathy, he doesn’t need my concern, he doesn’t want me talking about him like this, but I’m just curious about where he’s gonna go now as a fighter and I do feel for him. It’s hard. When you’re a guy like Tony Ferguson or anybody in the UFC that’s at the top of the food chain for so long and you’re one of the guys, you’re one of the main guys in that division for so long, and then to see this fall from grace if you will, to get dominated two times in a row.

“Charles Oliveira, for all the skill that he has and I said he was massively underappreciated, is not one of the guys that you think of as the stars of the division. He will be now, but he wasn’t prior to this fight. I just hope that Tony Ferguson deals with this well, I hope has a good team around him.”


Consecutive defeats are completely alien to Ferguson, who has been a dominant force at 155 pounds for the better part of the last decade. Before losing to Gaethje in May, “El Cucuy” won 12 straight fights in one MMA’s deepest divisions, knocking off the likes of Donald Cerrone, Anthony Pettis, Kevin Lee, Rafael dos Anjos, Edson Barboza, and Josh Thomson.

While Bisping made sure to praise Ferguson, he also emphasized the need for caution going forward.

“I just think the real story of what we’re seeing here is the rapid decline of Tony Ferguson because the human body can only take so much and Tony has been such a warrior for the UFC,” Bisping said. “I’ve got nothing bad to say about Tony Ferguson—and what I’m about to say, if I’m Tony, could be perceived as that way and that’s not what I’m trying to do—I have nothing but respect for Tony Ferguson. He is a true fighter. He’s an absolute warrior. He’s put on some sensational performances inside the octagon, but he’s also taken a lot of damage and often because he’s so f*cking tough he’s able to outlast his opponents, he takes this amount of damage, and then he puts the hurt on them and he gets the win. And it’s always in spectacular fashion, that’s why he gets so many bonuses.

“But my point and my theory is that you can only take so much. The human body has an expiry date. Okay, he’s not getting flatlined, he’s not getting knocked out, but he’s taking a lot of damage, he’s starting to slow down, he’s not looking quite as snappy, he’s not quite as explosive, and of course, he just lost two fights.”

Bisping added the caveat that losses to Gaethje and Oliveira are nothing to be ashamed of as he believes that those two can beat almost any lightweight on the planet not named Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Regardless of whether Ferguson’s losses are a sign of a greater problem or simply the consequences of facing top competition, Bisping would like to see Ferguson—who turns 37 in February—take some time off before returning to competition.

“If we know Tony Ferguson, he’s not the type of guy to sit around and say, ‘No no no, I’m done, I’ve taken too much damage,’” Bisping said. “No, he’s gonna say the opposite, he’s gonna say, ‘No, I’m fine. I just got beaten.’ Maybe there were some mistakes in camp or whatever. Tony’s not gonna accept that he’s on the decline. That’s what fighters do. Fighters never accept that. Fighters need somebody else, a third party to step in. A manager, a loved one, a wife, a coach, a friend, president of the UFC, who knows, we’ve seen that happen many times, to step in and say, ‘Tony, Tony, Tony, you’ve taken a lot of damage these days.’


“Because he can still compete and it’s only two losses. Back then it was 2012 before he got beat again, but I am posing the question and I do feel that the amount of punishment he’s taken over the course of his career is starting to catch up with him.”

https://www.mmafighting.com/platfor...&utm_source=twitter&__twitter_impression=true
 
<28>
the count is on point here, I agree with everything he said. It’s got to be tough for fighters to step away, and it’s tough to watch them keep fighting and losing more brain cells.
 
as a tony fan yes its time to step back from top comp. its ok if charles outstrikes you out grapples you or taps you, but he shouldnt be throwing anyone around.
 
even during his 12 fight win strak everybody knew he was going to pay the price for his fighting style. he ALWAYS took damage, lots of it. alot of his fights he got beat up on the feet or dominated on the ground before turning it around with his great cardio and toughness. he got blasted a zillion times against lando alone.

but that style will one day catch up with you. the ice man did the same thing......a technial brawler that was willling tot take 1 or 2 to dish one out. shit is not smart at all.

look at gsp and khabib. even if they would lose, nobody would say they have taken too much damage. from here on it's only downhill for tony
 
Bisping is correct here, everyone only has a certain amount of wars in their body. Gaethje said the same thing. It's time for him to find a strategy that doesn't involve taking so much damage.

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Look at the careers of other fighters who relied on their ability to tank damage and mount a comeback, like Chuck, Nog, etc. Doesn't end well.
 
It’s a tale as old as time.

guy with tons of wars + getting old + no real coaches + is crazy = rapid decline into meme fighter status.

Tony is a year away from being Diego Sanchez level.
 
Even on his win streaks he took a lot of damage

Got dropped against Vanata, Pettis etc.

He wasnt the most technical fighter but at his prime it was his cardio and chin that allowed him to just keep walking through shots and overwhelm opponents which is not durable for a long career
 
the best thing he could do now is to donate his brain for research - Doctoral thesis "Impact of continuous strikes to the head and the cause of ptsd"
 
Hooker vs Tony forcthe violence or a mirror match at ww vs Nico Price
 
Poor Tony. He was truly amazing but after two one sided loses and him bring over 36 years of age in a division where speed kills ... i dont think he will ever be champion or interim champ again.
 
The real question is if Oliveira would beat any version of Tony or not. For gaethje fight, he came with a brilliant gameplan and used all of Tony weaknesses. (Mainly his lack of defense)
 
We have no idea if Tony has declined or not. He faced tougher competition and got beat. Could have happened if he faced those guys years ago. Maybe give Lee or RDA another crack at him then we can tell.
 
He may be right or maybe Tony just had a bad night. Before the Justin fight he did that unnecessary weight cut. This fight he said he had a bad warm up and felt flat. I think the next fight will provide all the answers. If he loses again........time to start thinking about ending it. As of right now, I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt. He has been so solid up to this point........i think we owe it to him.
 
I’m not so sure Tony beats the likes of Tsarukyan, Islam, fiziev of the LW division anymore. He’s pretty much guaranteed to lose to the top 5 and is a coin flip to beat the rest of the top 15
 
Bisping does not know what he is talking about.

Tony just needs to work on his cardio...
















<Dany07>

I kid..
 
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