Tony ‘El Cucuy’ Ferguson returned to the Octagon after one year, against ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler at UFC 274. The former interim lightweight champion was aiming to send a statement after losing three straight bouts. Whereas, Chandler, after having back-to-back tough losses, was eyeing a win to stay relevant at 155lbs.
‘Iron’ Chandler not only made his return to the win column, but he also finished Tony Ferguson with the best front kick knockout of all time.
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In an exciting bout that saw Tony Ferguson getting early success, Michael Chandler defeated ‘El Cucuy’ via a brutal knockout just 17 seconds into the second round.
Also Read – Throwback to When Tony Ferguson Became the Interim UFC Lightweight Champion
With the win, Chandler improved his UFC record to 2-2 and his overall MMA record to 23-7; Ferguson faced his fourth consecutive defeat and slumped to 25-7.
The bout was a spectacle, provoking fans & fellow fighters to react to what transpired.
UFC community reacts to Michael Chandler vs. Tony Ferguson at UFC 274
The pivotal lightweight bout at UFC 274 (Chandler vs Ferguson) had the fight fans rolling their Twitter fingers and expressing their emotions.
Even the ‘Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment’ reacted to the fight. “Damn I’m watching from home and you can FEEL the mana and electricity for Chandler vs Ferguson right now thru the screen. Energy just came up in that arena. LFG boys!!! #UFC274”
Damn I’m watching from home and you can FEEL the mana and electricity for Chandler vs Ferguson right now thru the screen. Energy just came up in that arena. LFG boys!!! #UFC274
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) May 8, 2022
Holy shit.
What an INCREDIBLE KO from @michaelchandler. 👏🏾👏🏾👊🏾
And on top of that just delivered a truly electrifying promo that already sold tickets to his next fight, that’s not even booked yet.
Light fighting, promo 🎤 work is a special skill that =‘s 💰#UFC274— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) May 8, 2022
OMG Michael Chandler with the knockout of the year. Front kick that just knocked Tony Ferguson out cold #UFC274
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) May 8, 2022
🤦🏻♂️ https://t.co/jonvlM8Ezn
— Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) May 8, 2022
AS GOD AS MY WITNESS, MICHAEL CHANDLER JUST KILLED TONY FERGUSON.
— FightOracle ™ (@fightoracle) May 8, 2022
What’s next for Michael Chandler?
Interestingly, both fighters shared losses against the two guys fighting in the main event of the night, i.e., Charles Oliveira & Justin Gaethje. Thus, it would be interesting to see who prevails in that bout and whether the UFC tries to book the winner of the main event with Chandler, especially after such a spectacular performance against a game Tony Ferguson.
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Chandler called out both the fighters in the main event with a blistering address that shook the arena. Fans were buzzing as ‘Iron’ made it clear that if he doesn’t get the championship bout, he wants ‘The Notorious.’
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Given the way he secured the win and the way his bouts with Oliveira & Gaethje were both close and exciting, Chandler might get that ‘Dana White Privilege’ again.
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