Tony Ferguson addresses his future after suffering his seventh straight defeat against Britain’s Paddy Pimblett at UFC 296

• Tony Ferguson lost on points to Paddy Pimblett at UFC 296 on Saturday night
• It was his seventh straight loss and he has now addressed his future
• Jake Paul would be wasting an opportunity if he went over to MMA – The Hook

Tony Ferguson has issued a statement on Instagram after losing to British lightweight prospect Paddy Pimblett at UFC 296 on Saturday night.

The 39-year-old went into the fight after losing his previous six bouts and was comfortably beaten by Pimblett, who came close to finishing the American in the first round before cruising to a unanimous points win.

After slipping to his seventh successive defeat, UFC president Dana White admitted in his post-fight press conference that he ‘would love to see Tony retire’.

The popular 155lb fighter has now addressed his future in a message to his fans online, and hinted that he plans to continue in the sport.

‘Love my fans and supporters. You are all f****** fire,’ Ferguson wrote on his Instagram story.

Paddy Pimblett (right) dominated Tony Ferguson (left) on his way to a points win on Saturday

Ferguson has now lost seven straight fights, but hinted that he plans to continue in the sport

‘I met lots of you tonight, keep the faith MF’s. One foot in front of the other b******. Remember what I said crew — Champ.’

His ‘keep the faith’ motto indicates that he still believes he has something to offer inside the Octagon despite his disappointing run of results.

Prior to May 2020, Ferguson won 12 straight fights, and briefly held the lightweight interim title in 2017 before Khabib Nurmagomedov won the lightweight belt the following year.

Ferguson and Khabib were widely regarded as the two best lightweights on the planet at that point, but a scheduled fight between the pair was cancelled on five occasions for a variety of reasons.

Ferguson was still on the brink of a full title shot in 2020, but his momentum was halted when he was stopped by Justin Gaethje in the fifth round of their clash in Florida.

Ferguson is a former lightweight interim champion, but his career has gone downhill in recent years

While Gaethje went on to face Khabib later that year, Ferguson failed to recover from the beating he took in that fight.

He was beaten on points by Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush, before being knocked out in brutal fashion by a front kick from Michael Chandler.

Submission losses to Nate Diaz and Bobby Green followed, and he failed to get back on track on Saturday against Pimblett.

But his career may not be over yet, with fans’ favourite Ferguson seemingly considering carrying on to try and finish on a high. 

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