So, maybe you think Ferguson would be on the same path, especially after suffering his first KO defeat to Chandler. But a message from his wife helped him realize that it wasn’t age or time in the sport that was playing a role in these performances.
“My wife tells me, ‘When are you going to start training 100 percent,’” Ferguson said, “I haven’t trained 100 percent in years…I sparred for the first time in about five, six years. So, I’ve done a lot of things and taken myself out of my comfort zone. Which is easy for me, but a lot of other people, they don’t expect it. So, I saved [my best tricks] like a magician for a very long time, for the times that matter the most. And that’s now.”
Fight By Fight Preview | UFC 279: Chimaev vs Diaz
Not only is now the right time to start getting back in the win column, but also to find the most success in a new challenge, unfamiliar as of late, that Ferguson is being presented on Saturday night. At UFC 279: Chimaev vs Diaz, Ferguson will be competing at 170 pounds for this first time in 11 years.
On The Ultimate Fighter 13, Ferguson fought and won the competition at welterweight, but once he was signed to the UFC, it seemed clear that he’d find the most success at lightweight. From then on, it was 155 pounds for all 19 UFC fights.
