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Michael Chandler has recently been lobbying for a fight against Conor McGregor. Chandler’s longtime rival Tony Ferguson has now taken a jibe at him for wanting the bout.
Additionally, ‘El Cucuy’ suggested that a fight between himself and Chandler is currently in the works for April/June. Taking to Twitter, Tony Ferguson posted a tweet that said:
“There’s My B**ch!!! @MikeChandlerMMA The Brass @danawhite @ufc Relayed Your Message Saying You Would Be Ready For Me April/June. Looks Like Your Trying To Delay That A**-Whoopin’ I Owe Ya For Cutting In Line Kid- It’s Wrestling Season MF, Man Up- Champ”
The Ferguson-Chandler feud can be traced back to 2020. Ferguson’s legendary 12 fight win streak came to an end in May 2020, courtesy of a fifth round TKO loss against Justin Gaethje.
Ferguson was looking to return to the win column, while Michael Chandler aimed to fight a top-5 lightweight in his UFC debut. ‘Iron’ proceeded to call out Ferguson in late 2020. ‘El Cucuy’ accepted the challenge, but wasn’t willing to wait for a January 2021 fight against Chandler.
Resultantly, Tony Ferguson faced Charles Oliveira at UFC 256 in December 2020. Ferguson lost via unanimous decision. Meanwhile, Michael Chandler made his UFC debut with a first round TKO win over Dan Hooker at UFC 257 in January 2021.
Their paths crossed again ahead of UFC 262 in May 2021. Tony Ferguson was set to fight Beneil Dariush at the event. Michael Chandler was booked to fight Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC lightweight title.
During the UFC 262 pre-fight press conference, Ferguson accused UFC president Dana White of favoritism and asserted that Chandler enjoys “Dana White privilege".
Ferguson claimed that Chandler’s great relationship with White was the reason why he was accorded a title shot just one fight into his UFC career. Both fighters were beaten at UFC 262 – with Ferguson falling via unanimous decision and Chandler losing via second-round TKO.
Dana White on Tony Ferguson’s next fight
During the UFC Vegas 45 post-fight press conference on December 18th, 2021, Dana White suggested that the UFC has already booked Tony Ferguson’s next fight. The UFC president said:
“I think we have a fight for Tony Ferguson. I think we have him lined up with somebody.” On being asked whether Ferguson has been booked in a fun fight, Dana White noted, “Yeah, they're all fun fights. Look at tonight, they're all fun fights.”
Tony Ferguson hasn’t competed since UFC 262. However, Michael Chandler did fight once after UFC 262. Chandler’s most recent bout was a unanimous decision loss against Justin Gaethje at UFC 268 in November 2021.
