Tony Ferguson, The Swell of MMA

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It’s October! That means a few things, Pumpkins, Hoodies, Sam Adams Octoberfest & very scary movies. It is because of this pre-disposition that I think it to be the perfect time to discuss one of the, If not THE scariest fighter in mma history. No I don’t mean scary to us the fans, But scary to the poor bastard who has to fight them. Tony Ferguson is and always has been your favorite fighters, Favorite fighter. On top of his psychopathic love for carnage and violence, He displayed technical skill on a wooden platter. Never in my years of watching fights have I seen a fighter be so strange, so unorthodox, so unbelievably different yet so effective. Tony in his prime went on one of the biggest crusades for violence we have ever seen. Winning 12 straight with 9 finishes he was given the moniker of “The Boogeyman”. Can you think of a fighter more deserving of their nickname then him? I doubt it. Lets take a journey down memory lane & try to find out why he was so damn scary.

When you think of Tony Ferguson, You think of elbows. Or at lease I do. The variety. The efficiency. The creativity. He’s like a modern day Picasso with his elbows as the brush and his opponents blood as the paint. For your viewing pleasure I have assembled some of the best examples of Tony using his main weapons…

The Forward elbow. A staple of 4oz glove Muay Thai. The forward elbow when properly thrown is an excellent way to split the guard. An excellent example of creativity as well. Most MMA fighters throw a step in jab. Ironically that’s exactly what Kevin Lee attempted to throw. There is a big misconception with Tony that he is wild, To those people I would say pay closer attention. The body is off the center line. The elbow is on the center line. The right hand is prepared to parry the jab.

This. Is. The. Shit. I. Love. Another example of Tony showing the cold blooded assassin part of his persona. What is the biggest fear of a fighter attacking a shelling appt? If you guessed over extending and being countered, You would be correct. So you’re left with the question, How can I hit them with a zero percent chance of being hit. Simple. You take away their weapons. Tony frames, pulls the guard down, Shifts into southpaw and slings the elbow around the guard. Masterful stuff. Another little point I am just noticing is that Tony actually uses the forward momentum of the shift to increase power on the elbow. He also uses the force of pulling down the hands to spin. To summarize. He said fuck worrying about overextending.

Spinning Elbows. My god, The spinning Elbows. In this gif Lando attempts to throw a naked lead teep. Keeping form with the previous gif, notice how Tony deviates the course of the kick and uses that momentum to start the spin and land a super torqued elbow. That level of creativity and skill is something we have never seen. This ain’t nothing though wait for the next gif.

Ok, This is the gif that might summarize Tony Ferguson greater than any article could. Tony at his core is creativity meets skill meets timing meets balls. Let me elaborate. In this exchange Tony throws a naked two while shifting into southpaw. Following the textbook this is a huge no-no. This would be something a day 1 beginner would do mistakenly. But as you can imagine its deliberate. Look at the position Tony finds himself in. Outside the lead leg of RDA. He throws a spinning elbow from a position where he cannot get hit. Familiar right? I will come back to that point soon. Tony then re engages now from south paw. Pause. If you’re fighting at the highest level in the sport what is something you would never expect? Correct. Immediately throwing the same technique. That’s exactly what Tony does and he lands & he wasn’t hit once. Two wild exchange’s. Two power shots landed. Zero strikes absorbed. This by the way is on RDA one of the greatest 155lb fighters ever. Creativity meets skill meets timing meets balls.

Now as I mentioned in the previous chapter I would come back to my point. There is a large misconception that Tony Ferguson is not defensively sound. When you think back into Tony’s career you remember him leaving his opponents in a bloody pulp. What you don’t often remember is the fact Tony’s face was completely unscathed. He’s a truly fascinating individual that is both loved and misunderstood by the populace. With the technical breakdown portion of the article complete I would now like to take the time to discuss the part of fighting that is completely conjecture. Completely up for interpretation. If you disagree, That’s fine but remember you’re the one reading & I am the one writing…

I have been watching fights for a very long time. From my early beginnings falling in love with the style of the Spider, To me beginning to learn the finer points of fighting through doing, I have been around the block. When you have seen the sheer amount of fighting that I have, You start to blur the lines of what you remember. What exactly is memorable and why. If there was ever a fighter that deserves space in your memory bank its Tony Ferguson. This is where you need to stay with me… I think Tony Ferguson is cut from the cloth of fighters who would rather have great fights versus just win. In a game where most fighters would rather score double leg’s and lay in top half, Tony Ferguson would rather die trying. Nothing is free in this world & That includes putting on sick performances for the fans. While what I said earlier is true, Tony definitely did try to be defensively sound while having the highest probability of landing hard shot… It wasn’t always successful. The start of Tony’s downfall was the Justin Gaethje fight as is widely known. What the history books don’t often remember is how Tony Ferguson was set to fight Khabib for the fifth time. As we all know that fight never happened but at the time is was one of the most anticipated fights ever. Again this is my own conspiracy. I think the reason Tony decided to cut weight for a fight that he knew would never happen, Was that he felt like he needed the fans to know that it wasn’t his doing that the fight unraveled. I don’t think he could face himself knowing it was his fault that the fans were let down. Obviously no one blames him, A global pandemic happened lol. But I do think Tony needed to prove it to us or maybe to himself. An amazing and interesting look into the mind of an individual who above all else needed to be approved by the masses.

Today Tony is a shell of what he was. Who he was. A relic. A fossil from a previous time period where fighters demanded good performances. We as fans are left holding the bag. Much like the god awful Modelo commercial with Brian Ortega, We have a choice. Remember Tony for who he is now, Or remember him for who he was… El CuCuy.

Authors Note:

I really enjoyed writing about Tony. I feel in many ways it was my duty to write an article that encapsulated how he mystified me during his run. I hope I have done him justice. Above all else however I hope you have “Learned a thing or two about a thing or two”.

Your’s Truly

-Smoke