Tony Ferguson believes Bobby Green knew exactly what he was doing with his eye poke during their UFC 291 contest.
Ferguson suffered his sixth straight loss following a third-round submission defeat to Green on the UFC 291 main card this past weekend.
“El Cucuy” looked promising early on and even managed to drop an out-of-position Green in the first round. However, an accidental eye poke from Green a few moments later seemed to hamper Ferguson's vision and he never performed the same way again.
Eventually, Ferguson started becoming a punching bag as he was bloodied and battered before Green submitted him with an arm triangle choke with just over 10 seconds remaining in the final round.
And in his first statement since the defeat, Ferguson reflected on the preparation for the fight, how he felt during and his belief that Green's eye poke was intentional.
“Walked into the Delta Center to show the world I was back on track,” Ferguson wrote on Instagram. “The preparation for this fight was exceptional & it was one of the best camps I’ve had. As the fight began, I was in the Xone, flowing & feeling confident. Bobby knew the direction of the fight & I believe he knew what he was doing when he poked my eye. He has a big History of moves like this. It significantly impaired my vision, making it difficult to see clearly out of my eye.
“Despite this eye poke I never considered stopping the fight. Although the doc wanted too. Throughout my career, I’ve always pushed through challenges & never given up This time was no different. Unfortunately in sports, setbacks like this are part of the journey. While I won’t use the eye poke as an excuse for the outcome, I know for a fact I have more to give.”
After a legendary 12-fight winning streak from 2012 to 2020, Tony Ferguson is now on a six-fight losing streak and one more defeat away from tying BJ Penn's record of the all-time losing streak.
Many observers have called for him to retire and although that doesn't look to be the case as of yet, Ferguson did mention he would assess what would be next for him.
“Moving forward, I plan to work closely with Dana, Hunter & my entire team to assess what’s next,” he added. “I’d like to take a moment to say thank you to my Wife, my Family & my Fans. Your support means the world to me & it’s what drives me to keep pushing forward & striving for greatness.
“Thank you all for being by my side through the highs & lows of this sport that I love. Eye appointment tomorrow, some recovery & back after it. Love you all- Champ -CSO- #ufc291 Salt Lake City, Utah #AyMoe WooWooWooWoo Knyuck knyuck knyuck #ballsofsteel #F**kEm’IfTheyCantTakeAJoke”
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