Tony Ferguson Reveals He Cut 24 Pounds in 1 Week Despite UFC 249 Cancellation

UFC star Tony Ferguson went through with his weight cut this week despite the fact that UFC 249 was called off because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

According to ESPN's Marc Raimondi, Ferguson said he began the week at 179 pounds and cut 24 pounds to make a championship weight of 155 pounds on Friday morning.

Ferguson explained his decision to do the weight cut even though there was no event:

"It wasn't just for me, it was for my team, man, and my sponsors and obviously for my family. And just the commitment to myself to follow through with the weight cut. ... To me that says a lot more for my stock. Saying that you know what, 'I'm gonna make weight, I'm not gonna miss weight.' I have what it takes mentally to go through this fight camp. It's gonna be awesome, dude. It was such a great experience."

Ferguson was originally scheduled to face Khabib Nurmagomedov for the UFC Lightweight Championship, but when Khabib couldn't make it out of Russia because of travel restrictions related to COVID-19, he was replaced by Justin Gaethje in what would have been an interim title fight.

Dana White was planning to hold the event with no fans in attendance, but he later postponed it, saying ESPN executives asked him to "stand down."

White is planning a UFC card for May 9 at an undetermined location with Ferguson vs. Gaethje as the main event. Although Ferguson has yet to sign on, he acknowledged the possibility of having to cut weight again soon:

"I've been doing the exact same s--t. Everybody has been quarantined now, but I'm still living the same life. I'm still doing my thing, which is training and bettering myself every single day. My growth factor is f--king huge right now, pardon my language. Literally, I feel great.

"For me to make weight and Justin Gaethje not to make weight, that's a chalk line right there. That's a chalk line versus any opponent I have. Any person that would make championship weight today was the smart one that's gonna compete on that card, that's still competing."

The 36-year-old Ferguson owns a career professional MMA record of 25-3 with 12 wins by way of knockout and eight by submission. He is also on a 12-fight winning streak, which includes victories over big names such as Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis.

Ferguson is 15-1 under the UFC banner, and there is little doubt that he is the top contender and threat to Khabib in the lightweight division.

If a UFC event does happen on May 9 with Ferguson headlining against Gaethje, his decision to cut weight could give him a leg up on becoming interim champion.