Tony Ferguson returns to the UFC Octagon for what could be the final time this coming weekend at UFC Abu Dhabi when he takes on Michael Chiesa in a welterweight bout.

The last time Tony Ferguson got his hand raised in the Octagon was five years ago against Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at UFC 238.

Fast forward five years and ‘El Cucuy’ is spiraling on a seven-fight losing streak after being one of the most feared fighters in the lightweight division.

Fortunately this time round, the 40-year-old has been matched up accordingly against Michael Chiesa, who is unfortunately riding a three-fight losing streak himself.

Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

Tony Ferguson admits he has sparred for the first time in 7 years ahead of fight

Being on such a disappointing losing streak, the former UFC interim lightweight champion has attempted to change his already unique training regime a few times, and last time out, he bizarrely drafted in the help of David Goggins, who subsequently cornered him.

Having said that, this time around, the 40-year-old has decided to reintroduce sparring into his camp and has sparred ‘120 or more’ rounds during the lead-up to his fight this coming Saturday.

“I think it’s pretty cool that I’m able to do this (fight in Abu Dhabi), I obviously want to continue to do this so I have to perform and I will perform, that’s why this camp was a little more interesting for me,” Ferguson began to explain in an interview with the UFC.

“I went back to sparring… I went back to sparring, I haven’t sparred in seven years, where I’ve had good training partners, I put in about 120 rounds or more of sparring, I put in a lot of wrestling, good training partners, good vibes, a good team,” he continued.

Following his loss this past December against Paddy Pimblett, ‘El Cucuy’ underwent surgery on both his knee and elbow, meaning he had to slow training down, which he feels benefitted him.

“It was only until January when I had my two surgeries, I had back-to-back surgeries on my knee and my elbow, that it brought me slow enough, I had no choice but to go step by step to get my s*** back to where it needed to be that’s flexibility, mental, speed, so on. I went in there and took this camp very seriously, I had a lot of fun and I still talk to Goggins, he said ‘Go f*** s*** up kid’.”

Fans react to Ferguson going back to sparring

Although he is on a devastating losing streak, the fanbase has always stood with Ferguson and he continues to be a fan favorite because of his insane fight style.

Despite that, the majority consensus is that it’s a bad idea for the 40-year-old to re-implement sparring into his camp, as he will only take more damage than he needs to.

One fan commented: “It’s irresponsible to let this guy keep fighting.”

Undoubtedly, if he loses on Saturday night, the UFC is extremely unlikely to provide him with another fight, as he would then be on an eight-fight losing streak at 40 years old.

Another fan commented: “Wish the guy the best, but as a fan, I’m tired of hearing the same old thing from him. It’s always went back to doing this and that… had the best camp ever… etc etc.”