Tony Ferguson Reacts To Important UFC 296 Clash Against Paddy Pimblett

Ferguson shares his thoughts on the Paddy matchup.

Fernando Quiles Jr. | Oct 2, 2023

Tony Ferguson Reacts To Important UFC 296 Clash Against Paddy Pimblett /

Tony Ferguson has spoken out on the surprising showdown with Paddy Pimblett scheduled for UFC 296.

Fight fans were thrown a curveball when it was announced that "El Cucuy" would be going one-on-one with one of the UFC's top rising stars. Paddy "The Baddy" can see his stock rise higher if he can get past the battle-tested Ferguson, who remains a fan favorite despite his rough six-fight skid.

Ferguson and Pimblett will collide inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 16. Those in favor of the matchup believe it'll be a stern test for Pimblett. Those who oppose it believe the UFC is setting Ferguson up just to elevate Paddy.

Tony Ferguson UFC 296 — (Jeff Swinger/USA TODAY Sports)

ESPN's Brett Okamoto recently spoke to Tony Ferguson, who shared his thoughts on the matchup with Pimblett, and why he likes the booking.

"I have nothing against the kid," Ferguson said. "Patrick seems like a pretty legit dude. He gets pretty big. His standup's okay, but his ground game's a lot better. I'm gonna be real, I love fighting internationals. It's just cool, I love it. Going after Khabib for a long time, going after McNuggets, this is about as close as it's gonna get for right now. So, as soon as we get through this dude we'll go after Conor. Get signed on the dotted line and get through USADA."

For those wondering if retirement lingers in Ferguson's mind, he made it clear that he still has plenty of fight left in him.

"I get the narrative," Ferguson said. "I've been in this game for plenty of time, but I'm a 39-year-old that's faster than a lot of 21-year-olds. I'm still learning this f****** game, which is cool. When Rocky says, 'Oh yeah, I've got some fuel in the tank,' no, it's not almost on empty. I have a full tank."

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Published Oct 2, 2023

FERNANDO QUILES JR.

Fernando has over a decade of combat sports news writing experience. He currently covers MMA, boxing, and pro wrestling. Fernando joined MMA Knockout as the Lead Writer/Editor when it was founded in 2023.