The Only Way Tony Ferguson Beats Khabib Nurmagomedov is By a Cut: Josh Thomson

After the victorious return of Conor McGregor, fans have already started speculating a rematch between Khabib and Conor. But considering Khabib takes on his toughest opponent yet in his next fight Conor may not even fight Khabib for the lightweight title after UFC 249. Khabib Nurmagomedov takes on the former lightweight interim champion, Tony Ferguson in the main event of UFC 249.  This fight is a fan favorite and a long-awaited one. After being called off multiple times in the past fans are finally expecting to see two of the greatest lightweights of all time inside the octagon. However, can Tonny Ferguson defy the odd and hand Khabib his first MMA defeat?

Tony Ferguson does bring intriguing skillsets into the octagon. He is lethal everywhere. He can beat his opponent with strikes and he can win fights on the ground. But can he beat arguably the greatest lightweight of all time? Khabib overwhelms his opponents on the ground and he is no joke in striking either. Though his striking his very rudimentary it’s very effective and he has made a ton of improvement in the striking aspect of his fight. Both fighters have phenomenal cardio and they are evenly matched. That’s why the fans can’t wait to see this one go down.

Josh Thomson Gives Verdict on Ferguson vs Nurmagomedov

Josh Thomson who fought Tony Ferguson back in 2015 appeared on the Joe Rogan podcast and he had some interesting views on the Khabib vs Tony fight. Thomson called himself a fan of Ferguson, but he was not sure about betting his money on Tony Ferguson in this fight. Josh Thomson considers Tony Ferguson a tough opponent for any fighter since Ferguson is comfortable wherever the fight goes. He can trade strike with you and he can hit his submission on the ground. Thomson stated:

“The guy can take a shot, give a shot, the guy does not slow down. The guy does not care where the fight goes. Anytime you have somebody who does not care where the fight goes it changes the dynamic of how you approach him. ”

Thomson further explained that Khabib would like to take the fight to the ground and press Ferguson against the cage and do the damage there, but he also made it clear that if Khabib is not careful with the positions he may find himself in the submissions of Tony Ferguson. But it seemed Thomson was leaning towards Khabib on this one.

How Can Tony Ferguson Beat Khabib Nurmagomedov

Josh Thomson does think Tony Ferguson can win the fight but not likely via a knockout or submission. He believes a doctor stoppage is very much possible in this fight. Tony Ferguson is notorious for his lethal and unpredictable elbows. Looking at what he has done to his past few opponents it’s very likely that Ferguson will give Khabib a few cuts to worry about during the fight. It has to be noted that this fight is in New York. And we saw what happened when the cage side doctor saw the nasty cut above the eye of Nate Diaz in the BMF title fight against Jorge Masvidal. Keeping that in mind, Josh Thomson can see Tony Ferguson winning the fight via doctor’s stoppage.