UFC 249 free fight: Tony Ferguson defeats Anthony Pettis in bloody war

When caught in a dark place, few fighters thrive like Tony Ferguson.

Ferguson (25-3 MMA, 15-1 UFC) faced former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis at UFC 229, having miraculously returned from knee surgery just six months later.

Ferguson has been rocked in fights before, but it only seems to make him stronger, and when Pettis had him in deep trouble early in Round 2, he had to show his grit once again.

After being dropped by a counter right, Ferguson started rolling around to get out of danger and, in the midst of the chaos, Pettis was cut badly and the referee intervened to check on his cut. When the action resumed, the momentum started to swing Ferguson’s way, and he fully capitalized.

Ferguson continued to press forward, throwing heavy leg kicks and shots to the body. “El Cucuy’s” constant pressure eventually took its toll on Pettis, who was cut on the other side of his face. After the end of Round 2, Pettis’ corner decided to waive the fight off, and Ferguson was awarded the TKO win.

Since then, Ferguson scored another stoppage win over Donald Cerrone, where he was able to, yet again, inflict a ton of damage to his opponent.

He was scheduled to challenge UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 249, but after the travel ban restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak forced Nurmagomedov out, Ferguson was booked against Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title.

Before he returns to action on April 18, check out Ferguson’s bloody battle with Pettis in the video above.