Its pretty obvious he has very severe CTE , I remember when his domestic abuse incident . His wife at the time of the incident said he would wake up choking her or wouldn’t recognize her . Leads me to believe he’s got a huge issue and these are just results of CTE
@@djkillstreak33 i never heard that about choking, what is the source for that? All I have heard and read was paranoia and erratic behaviour but never physical abuse.
Fighters like Tony aren't strong enough🤷🏽♂️. The fact is, if you're not physical enough or have enough muscle mass in a weight class based sports, the ones who do have more athletic ability will dominate. If you don't have it, you end up ole Tony; taking unnecessary punishment, even in your wins.
We need to normalise throwing in the towel in MMA. There was no reason for Tony to keep fighting Justin for as long as he did. Took way too much unnecessary damage. The corners job is protect the fighters from themselves - if you can’t do that, get out!
No matter how you feel about Khabib, he was the one guy to demonstrate respect for Tony’s mental health. Everyone else snickers and laughed while he was dead serious that we needed to help him.
Khabib ducked the guy like no tomorrow and he called him crazy brah, he the one who didn't just made fun of tony he called him outright crazy. Talk about class brah.
Its rough to see Tony going like this. He can still take control of his life. He don't have to go out sad, he has a lot to offer. Maybe not in the cage anymore but can help the next generation of fighters who watched him
Fighters like Tony aren't strong enough🤷🏽♂️. The fact is, if you're not physical enough or have enough muscle mass in a weight class based sports, the ones who do have more athletic ability will dominate. If you don't have it, you end up ole Tony; taking unnecessary punishment, even in your wins.
@@dhuss14 Tony was super athletic before he wrecked his body and his fundamentals was never good enough to cover for his other shortcomings unfortunately.
@@dhuss14 bro u been on 3 different comments saying this shit, give it a rest. He was the boogeyman and uncrowned champ of a whole division at one point for a long while. Niggas get old and washed that’s just the facts tony is like 38 man. Not everyone can be Jon jones, Yoel Romero or Brazilian. Stop hating under these comments fore I report ya goofy ahhh
Despite his talent and success, the guy has made some horrendous career decisions. Deciding to fight Justin Gaethje after the Khabib fight fell through for the FIFTH time and cutting weight twice is definitely a Tony Ferguson move, but that doesn’t make it any less stupid. He really is the type of guy to be the worst at being the best.
It's the most Tony move ever, he is just different from the rest of us, but yes that was such a dumb move. Although we all must admit Tony has acted like a nutcase from day 1, my man should probably have seen a shrink 20-25 years ago.
The thing is Tony shouldn't have even had to fight gaethje. He earned his shot 10x over (12 to be exaxt). But because Dana's a scumbag and Tony didn't have his privilege he had to fight for it and made said decisions. If you want some substance for my argument, connor mcreggor got a shot at the belt after beating Dennis siver.
The guy is 100% suffering from CTE. As much as it sucks for fight/sports fans, the reality is that any sports where participants suffer regular head trauma, be it MMA, boxing, football, rugby, Muay Thai, etc., is bound to have negative lasting effects on these athletes, including shortened lifespans and erratic behaviour impacting their friends and families. The unfortunate reality is that any level of regular, repeated trauma to the brain is bound to have negative, permanent effects on those athletes. We are just seeing this earlier in Ferguson’s case because of his aggressive fighting style, little regard he has for his own health, and massive amount of punishment he has taken over the years.
I've always said you could see it in his eyes, there's always been something really dark dwelling in Tony's mind, without it I don't think he would have been the same fighter, but it kills me to see one of my all time favorites go down like this. So yeah, hold on I'm crying brother indeed.
It's very obvious and always has been, you don't keep yourself physically occupied for 6+ hours a day like he does and wake up and go for runs in the middle of the night if you're not trying to fight something off or keep something under control.
Tony in his prime was a beast. He had insane cardio that many fighters could not hang with, he had unorthodox striking that was unpredictable and his elbows were like a sword. He can sprawl out of anything, and his ground game was deadly.
Tony was a guy who didn't get what he deserved from the UFC. Such a long win streak, he should've been given a title shot so much sooner, he just wasn't a marketable fighter at the time. Tony was such an unpredictable person and fighter, and that aided in his success. He was like a virus that a computer could not coordinate with. He could beat up so badly, but if the opponent slipped once, he would find that crack and he would flood any opening with crazy pressure until the opponent folded. He's one of my all time favorites, and honestly his whole career changed when he tripped on the cable that injured him, preventing him from getting the Khabib shot. Tony would've been Khabib's toughest challenge had they ever fought. Yeah Tony is likely to lose that one, but he is also the fighter who could've surprised us and somehow caused an upset. Tony was so wild and unconventional that maybe it would've given Khabib's tried and true strategy some problems. I would've loved to see Max Holloway move up and face Tony Ferguson at his prime at LW. Would've been an amazing display of cardio and movement
Tony was great untill he met the elite fighters of the devision. His fight against kevin lee already showed that he was never going to give khabib any problems. And he has to thank god that he never fought poirier. Because that would’ve been a worst night than the fight against justin
Tony was always marketable! You just didn’t notice til Dana told you he was. He was a star when he beat lando cantata with that bloody ass farce in the final seconds of the last round. Dana just didn’t give him his shot when he deserved it cuz he was chugging Connor’s cock
@@atius8571 rda would always get destrroyed by the current top 5. Yes those guys were good back in their era, but the next era was better than the previous. Tony won via decision. Eddie alvarez tko’d him. We all know what happened to eddie
I wonder how much is caused from mental health issues vs brain trauma. I know people who have never experienced any kind of concussion in their life but suffer from similar paranoia and manic episodes. I can't imagine adding brain trauma to these issues. I am glad to hear he was never physically violent to his wife, though, if that is any kind of silver lining. Truly wishing the best for him.
Like you said combine mental health issues and brain trauma together and add the fact that you are in the spotlight and yeah things are going to explode someday sad for sure and hoping for the best
Honestly I think it’s something you are born with, like schizophrenia. I’m not neurologist and brain trauma certainly does not help but I think brain trauma causes problems later in life when it becomes an issue. I think drugs are a lot more likely to cause psychosis and mental disorders. There’s research suggesting smoking weed makes you more likely to get psychosis. Besides, his wife said he’s been acting delusional since 2011. His head hadn’t been beaten nearly as much as your average professional boxer. Anyway I’m pretty sure the general consensus is that psychotic disorders come from genetics. It’s impossible to find out until they die and we cut up their brain. Of course, there is still the case of Chris Benoit, the WWE wrestler who strangled his family to death due to mental problems from head trauma. I think tony must be suffering from some sort of schizo-affective disorder (I am not a psychologist). Maybe he is already diagnosed but doesn’t want it to be known so he can keep fighting. Believing in demons, people in your walls, microchips in your knees. Cmon, that’s straight up schizophrenia.
I am no professional but because he has always been doing crazy things for a long time before he suffered any brutal beatdowns I would assume mental health is moreso a factor, the fights may not even play a factor into anything. He is capable of being a good man and it appears he usually is very much so but he has his down moments
The most mystical to me is that both Tony and Khabib pulled equally Then the pandemy comes when they tied 2-2 on pulling out It was like fate itself that denied us of this fight...
Tony is a tragedy that should show how even the most tenacious, resilient, and talented of us still need support. You missed out by not getting into the conflict of interest w/his management, coaching/team issues and the weight cut craziness before the Gaethje fight. Or how his longest running coach Eddy Bravo is a conspiracy nut. Tony needed stable dependable people around him who would push back on his worse tendencies and instead it looks like Bravo only got to stick around that long because he provided zero pushback. It's not just bad luck, he was consistently thrown to the wolves and not a single person along the chain ever made a decision in his favor. No one survives that forever. Tony shows that no amount of hardship earns you a break. You need people to depend on like everyone that became champ instead of him. All of them had coaches, teams and usually other people in their life committed to helping them.
Shame Tonys career went down it did. Dude was a boogey man from 2013 to 2019. With insane cardio, unorthdox, decpetive power, and underrated offensive grappling. Crazy hes getting subbed by Nate, cause if they fought in their prime in 15-16, tony washes him with ease.
There’s a big mistake by Tony everybody seems to miss. The guy ended cutting weight twice in 2 weeks as he had prepared for Khabib. Since Khabib couldn’t travel, Justin replaced him on short notice. This resulted in Tony coming into the fight completely drained and exhausted. He looked like a skeleton that night and it clearly impacted his stamina. He wanted to get one over Khabib so bad that he stepped onto the scale (even though Khabib’s team announced that he couldn’t travel). Tony took photos of himself on the scale and mocked Khabib for running away. Prior to that, Tony had his famous accident at the Fox studios and ruptured his knee. Khabib already flew to the U.S. and went through training camp. So he cut the weight and showed up and kept asking the journalists “where is Tony Ferguson? I am here! Where is he?!”. Khabib did this knowing that Ferguson was in the hospital because in 2017, Tony took shots at him for missing weight and being hospitalized. When Khabib was in the hospital, Tony went to the press conference and mocked him and accused him or running away. He famously tweeted an insult called “cooking with Khabib”. This back and forth between them is what led to Tony cutting weight twice and coming into the Gaethje fight disfigured. After Justin killed Tony, the latter said “I had prepared for Khabib and not Justin Gaethje”. Ultimately, his obsession with Khabib was the key in his downfall and costed him his interim title, his title shot and his sanity. To this day, he still tweets or mentions Khabib after every single defeat…
Another person mentioned the double cut and it's mentioned alot when talked about Tony, not to this extent though, good job! Tony has som for of obsessive behaviour for sure, I think he has always had mental health problems in combination with CTE. His wife said it started after TUF, maybe he got bonked on the dome and some wires just crossed or some shit, I mean who knows.
I missed this essential piece of information in the video and was looking through the comments looking for this. The double weight cut has to be mentioned in the video. I think that things could have gone different for Tony if he didn't do that. He could have beaten Justin on a good day but I honestly don't think he would have ever beaten Khabib. Still sad for him that he didn't fight him and found out if he could or could not beat him. As a Khabib fan I always had mixed feelings about how Khabib was bullying him verbally, because it was clear at some point that he had some mental issues.
I don't see how that explains his poor striking technique and inability to make adaptations during his fight against Gaethje. Sure, it was stupid for Tony to drain himself for no reason after he knew the fight was off, but his loss had nothing to do with his condition.
@@boshi9 his brain wasn’t working because he went through the most draining process in this sport twice in one week, at least that’s my interpretation.
@@raahym These mistakes were always present in his fights, e.g. he tends to overextend when punching and stays in a vulnerable position for too long. Michael Johnson was able to capitalize on that 8 years before Justin.
I’m glad you brought up his behavior on the ultimate fighter, I think it’s important to understand the type of guy tony is, plus cte equals a disaster waiting to happen
In regards to CTE, it’s going to be incredibly interesting as UFC fighters age. CTE doesn’t just go away once you stop getting knocked out, it only doesn’t progress as fast. The sad fact is, that there have been countless football, rugby players and boxers who retire, aren’t heard from for about 10-15 years, and when you hear from them it was just after some horrible episode. Not only to get CTE which impacts every aspect of life, from social skills, paranoia, physical speech mechanics, emotional stability but to then loose doing something that you loved to do, or gave you some value/purpose/ability to provide is fucking rough.
Gaethje vs Ferguson was absolutely the end for Ferguson. He took way too much damage during that fight. Idk how his corner allowed him to receive that much punishment and expected him to come back for his next fights like he would be the same person. Sometimes to save a career you gotta throw in the towel; you gotta save a really tough fighter from their own toughness. Bro was literally too tough for his own good with a corner like that ngl. They must’ve thought he really was invincible
Tony's a beast, but that fight with Gaethje was life-altering. That was the worst beating I've seen without there being a ko. Tony's got a great chin, but it was an absolute curse in that fight.
@@carlopedersoli4844 That last punch before Herb Dean stepped in. Tony just walked away, shaking his head as if to say "enough!" It was like something broke inside. And he's never been the same since. That fire he had, sadly, is gone.
Tony reminds me a lot of Junior Dos Santos after the two Cain fights. Those fights were also horrific beatings and similar to Tony, JDS seemed slow afterwards.
Yep. But in my head he knocked Bobby out clean in the first, same like Justin at the end of the second, idfk... too sad... but at least black beast got his switch knee, so it looks like there's a God after all...
@kapkam515 you right, Tony shifted momentum his way by setting that pawn down, that's when that dirty mfer went full prong. I don't think Tony could see, b/c he kept eating that left after that.
Unpopular Opinion , Tony never fighting khabib is probably the best thing that's ever happened to him . The fight never needed to happen because the rivalry that they had was more entertaining than the fight would've been . If it did happen the first time Khabib could've beaten him senseless and his career would've ended there .
209 Khabib's boxing was bad. That was probably Tony's window of opportunity. After his leg injury, that window began to close and after Gaethje, it slammed shut.
He could have never ever defeated khabib its not even close and anyone who believes Tony had the abilities to defeat an all time great like that does not understand what they see when they watch fighting. Tony struggled against many lower level fighters and it is evident that Khabib destroys him
@@City0fTroy There was a time when Ferguson vs Khabib would have been a very competitive matchup especially around the first and second time they were scheduled to fight. I think in 2020, Khabib would have definitely won. To say that Tony struggled against lower level fighters is nonsense when Khabib struggled against Tibau whereas Ferguson submitted Tibau and many other similar fighters they fought.
@@gamebred6995 it turned out to become an interim fight. Tony should just wait to get the Khabib fight and Gaethje might fight that night too but not Tony obviously and not an interim one as well.
Saved America, he did. And singlehandedly made it possible for all sports to be played again in the future. No small feat. I credit him with defeating the pandemic. He is a hero in my book.
It’s wild to think that the tide really turned for him when he tripped over a camera cable while wearing his sunglasses inside, and injured his knee. This was right after he won the interim belt and was set to fight Khabib. At that point, he was also addressing and working his mental health.
This is sad bit still makes me appreciate and respect Khabib for leaving on his on terms and finishing at the peak of his career, most fighters stop when its too late
Remember, future fighters...never ever make career decisions for the fans. They ain't gonna pay your bills when your body is too broken to entertain them anymore
His wife said his behavior took a turn for the worse when he tore his ankle before the khabib fight. Imagine getting the same biggest fight of your life rescheduled 3 times and the 4th time you tear your lcl on a wire where you're promoting the fight. Brutal, but not as brutal as his new DUI.
Honestly man, 2 weight cuts and still he went toe to toe with Gaethje for those first 2 rounds. It was only in round 3 where he started to fade. Poor Tony. And to me, Gaethje's never had a better performance. And a big part of that was thanks to Whitman for literally calming and guiding his emotions.
Ufc needs to induct Tony in the hall of fame to give him the sense he’s done honestly I really think he needs some sort of merit to end his amazing career
Man I was worried for tony after the chandler knockout. Ive only been watching ufc for about two years max but that was definitely the longest I've seen someone out for in the Octagon
He was never all there in the head and I heard rumors of him using meth. His wife had to leave the house for a while because he thought robots were chasing him or something like that. He was my favorite fighter to watch in the UFC. He didn’t look the same when he came back from his injury. So idk if it’s addiction or just the CTE but something definitely changed in him.
Hold on brother, he wasn't exactly just outclassed by MJ, his hand was broken in the first round, that's a pretty major injury, incredible that he even survives it
EGO is a tricky frequency if you cant match it in manipulative society we live today you can go wrong wrong ways...hope Tony realises that he has done to much for sport people and world and no alcohol or drug will make him better than his hardwork and creativity already gave him
An important fact that was left out of this video: Tony did TWO weight cuts in 3 weeks before the Gaethje fight. I truly believe it was the 2 weight cuts plus the damage taken from Justin that ended Tony's career
Not related to the video, But can you make Manny Pacquiao video. I can see your pfp is him. Anyways whoever is reading this, I hope you have a good day.
I remember his behavior in the TUF house was pretty bad, but I had forgotten how bad. When people are drunk, they show who they really are. I thought he had left all that behind, but I guess not. I had not heard about the DUI. Fighting is a cruel game. You take people that are comfortable with violence, and then beat the impulse control out of them. It is sad, but this is what our lust for the fight game produces. I hope the best for Tony. His fighting style was fun to watch, but it has cost him dearly. CTE makes these athletes do things that get them hurt. Evan Tanner, Matt Hughes, War Machine, now Tony. They may very well had done these things without the concussions, but let’s be real, why take the chance? I am sorry to all these guys that cannot form complete sentences (Tito was like that before his first fight so I don’t blame CTE for that) and there is A LOT of living to be done after the age of 35. When you are 20, life is long and you are invincible. But CTE is not obvious to the victim right away. Concussions were a badge of honor when I was in High School. Playing through dizziness and a headache meant you would never let down the team. But, in my opinion, they are the scariest injuries because of the long term effects. The worst that could happen to a broken leg would be an amputation. But dementia at 35 is way more messed up than losing a leg.
Some of Tonys later fights were really hard to see. You just knew, he can’t give up and he probably would’ve benefited from having a weak chin. CTE is no joke and the most spectacular fighters are often the brawlers who take and dish the most damage. Really hope he gets the help he needs, but I’m afraid of what can happen when his brain is irreparably damaged
It’s worth mentioning that Tony choose to cut weight twice very close to fighting Justin. I remember seeing him post about it on social media. I’m not sure how much that effected him but it surely did not help. 😭
Reminder that Bobby was getting rocked until the eye poke, which completely changed the momentum of the fight. Tony still has El Cucuy in him and can do the work, and as much as I want to see him keep fighting...he should hang it up. Absolutely heartbreaking seeing my favorite fighter go through this. The things he did to people in the ring was terrifying, in such a good way.
Sad that CTE is almost definitely playing a part, however Drunk driving is just absurdly disgusting. It wouldn't have been the worst if he came out of the accident the only casualty, call me heartless but I'd rather it be him than anyone else due to HIS stupid fucked up decision.
Tony is a manic depressive with paranoid traits. I’ve seen this plenty of times before. It’s normally around tony’s age when these problems really start showing themselves. I think fighting was like a bandage for his mental state. Maybe fighting was a grounding experience for him and now that he doesn’t have that outlet anymore, things are getting worse.
There are fighters like Ferguson and Pena that couldn't hold down regular jobs and finish vocational training. They were fortunate to become pro fighters
Hasn't been the same since the gaethje fight. The level of damage and trauma he took would change anyone. Thankfully no one got hurt during the crash. Hope he is doing okay and gets help.
That call from his wife I believe happened before his loosing streak. It’s sad he will forever be my favorite MMA Fighter but his fall was so hard to watch
Reading the comments here I just don't see why everybody is hating Tony for the double weight cut decision. The fight was cancelled for the fifth time, Tony doesn't get any privilege from the UFC. If he decided not to fight Gaethje, then the same story would have repeated where they made Prorier fought Max leaving Tony into the darkness. Only if he was ever supported by the UFC. The man was stripped of his interim title, and then had to make a comeback in 5 months after a catastrophic knee injury.
It’s so sad to see Tony going this. I pray he gets the help he needs. He’s been one of my favorites for a long time now. He had so many memorable fights. No matter what his legacy will live on forever
I remember the first time I heard Tony talk was on one of those old UFC Fox RUclips shows. They were ranking nicknames and Tony put himself at first, and I was like "who tf is this guy? He hasn't even done anything to earn that nickname." My wife grew up in a religious Mexican household and when I asked her what cucuy meant, she gasped lol, Mexicans legit are scared of that name, I thought it was hilarious. He was about 4 fights into his 12 fight streak, I watched him the entire time. Very quickly he became my favorite fighter, and I'll stan for him over Khabib all day everyday. I don't think Tony has anything left, I just hope he opens a gym and finds some stability in training upcoming killers.
He already has a little gym he built himself and trains some guys - it's more of a cult of personality type thing, but critically been a massive cf of a distraction for his actual training.
All time favorite fighter and the scariest fighter in his prime. Very sad to see his downfall but it was somehow expected given his crazy violent style.
There was a Chechen fighter who publicly congratulated a teenager for beheading a French school teacher. I forget his name but he was KOed by michel pereira and was released
Ive always had a problem with the weight cut pull out for Khabib and Tony 3rd try. Injuries, the pandemic, and health complications are understandable if they are out of your control. However, getting hospitalized for a severe weight cut is something you control. Tony would've probably lost dont get me wrong, but still it's BS IMO
With all the research about CTE and knowing how much punishment he took in his career, you just gotta hope for the best when it comes to Tony.
And from some fighters deaths after their UFC career and MMA careers in general to memory CTE in MMA is severe.
Its pretty obvious he has very severe CTE , I remember when his domestic abuse incident . His wife at the time of the incident said he would wake up choking her or wouldn’t recognize her . Leads me to believe he’s got a huge issue and these are just results of CTE
He needs HBOT
And for his wife and kid, Tony is a scary dude for sure.
@@djkillstreak33 i never heard that about choking, what is the source for that?
All I have heard and read was paranoia and erratic behaviour but never physical abuse.
a sad man once said: "Tony the type of guy"
comment sections used to be flooded with this meme and literally next day after gaethje you couldn't find any 😢
Literally bruh 😢
frffr
Fighters like Tony aren't strong enough🤷🏽♂️. The fact is, if you're not physical enough or have enough muscle mass in a weight class based sports, the ones who do have more athletic ability will dominate. If you don't have it, you end up ole Tony; taking unnecessary punishment, even in your wins.
@@dhuss14 shut up couch coach 😂😂😂 thinking you know about something that you never been apart of 😂😂😂😂
We need to normalise throwing in the towel in MMA. There was no reason for Tony to keep fighting Justin for as long as he did. Took way too much unnecessary damage. The corners job is protect the fighters from themselves - if you can’t do that, get out!
Facts
Derek Brunson's corner in his previous two fights had the right idea.
Tony dropped him in the 2nd and was winning the 3rd round. 4th & 5th was a slaughter tho
Zero
@@mistermiyagi6073Tony dropped him in the first was getting beat every single round of that fight coming from a Tony fan
No matter how you feel about Khabib, he was the one guy to demonstrate respect for Tony’s mental health. Everyone else snickers and laughed while he was dead serious that we needed to help him.
Entirely true. Khabib does have class
Khabib was scared, he never fought someone with serious ground game
Khabib is a good guy man ethics wise
@@chiquita683 no, he make it look like his opponent have no ground game
Khabib ducked the guy like no tomorrow and he called him crazy brah, he the one who didn't just made fun of tony he called him outright crazy. Talk about class brah.
Its rough to see Tony going like this. He can still take control of his life. He don't have to go out sad, he has a lot to offer. Maybe not in the cage anymore but can help the next generation of fighters who watched him
yep he needs to start teaching the new generation the art of throwing sand
Fighters like Tony aren't strong enough🤷🏽♂️. The fact is, if you're not physical enough or have enough muscle mass in a weight class based sports, the ones who do have more athletic ability will dominate. If you don't have it, you end up ole Tony; taking unnecessary punishment, even in your wins.
CTE dont work that way fam. It just going to decline from here
@@dhuss14 Tony was super athletic before he wrecked his body and his fundamentals was never good enough to cover for his other shortcomings unfortunately.
@@dhuss14 bro u been on 3 different comments saying this shit, give it a rest. He was the boogeyman and uncrowned champ of a whole division at one point for a long while. Niggas get old and washed that’s just the facts tony is like 38 man. Not everyone can be Jon jones, Yoel Romero or Brazilian. Stop hating under these comments fore I report ya goofy ahhh
Despite his talent and success, the guy has made some horrendous career decisions. Deciding to fight Justin Gaethje after the Khabib fight fell through for the FIFTH time and cutting weight twice is definitely a Tony Ferguson move, but that doesn’t make it any less stupid. He really is the type of guy to be the worst at being the best.
That's what you get for showing off. Zero sympathy.
It's the most Tony move ever, he is just different from the rest of us, but yes that was such a dumb move.
Although we all must admit Tony has acted like a nutcase from day 1, my man should probably have seen a shrink 20-25 years ago.
He’s not so bright
"I like Tony Ferguson, but he's stupid guy" - Khabib Nurmagomedov, 2020
Pretty much sums up how we all feel about Tony
The thing is Tony shouldn't have even had to fight gaethje. He earned his shot 10x over (12 to be exaxt). But because Dana's a scumbag and Tony didn't have his privilege he had to fight for it and made said decisions. If you want some substance for my argument, connor mcreggor got a shot at the belt after beating Dennis siver.
The guy is 100% suffering from CTE. As much as it sucks for fight/sports fans, the reality is that any sports where participants suffer regular head trauma, be it MMA, boxing, football, rugby, Muay Thai, etc., is bound to have negative lasting effects on these athletes, including shortened lifespans and erratic behaviour impacting their friends and families.
The unfortunate reality is that any level of regular, repeated trauma to the brain is bound to have negative, permanent effects on those athletes.
We are just seeing this earlier in Ferguson’s case because of his aggressive fighting style, little regard he has for his own health, and massive amount of punishment he has taken over the years.
Obvious case of a combo of CTE and mental health issues imo.
@@QenaitheCustodianGuard Agreed. That drunk fight on TUF before all the wars he’s been in showed he’s got some problems
@@zachfigas5793 his wife said that's when it started, Tony is a scary man for sure, his wife is a champ.
and this applies to grappling also?
@@marcosgarcia8544 head trauma
Tony has one of the saddest downfalls ever and when I think about tony I just get sad.
Saddest downfalls in MMA history:
1. Tony Ferguson
2. Dominick Reyes
3. Chuck Liddell
4. BJ Penn
Accurate
Haha! You’ll be okay lady.
Harden the f#ck up.
@@madgavin75685. Alex peirara
@@disappointmentyes6387 what?
I've always said you could see it in his eyes, there's always been something really dark dwelling in Tony's mind, without it I don't think he would have been the same fighter, but it kills me to see one of my all time favorites go down like this. So yeah, hold on I'm crying brother indeed.
What exactly ?
It's very obvious and always has been, you don't keep yourself physically occupied for 6+ hours a day like he does and wake up and go for runs in the middle of the night if you're not trying to fight something off or keep something under control.
@@QenaitheCustodianGuard Exactly.
@@QenaitheCustodianGuard genius level comment
@@QenaitheCustodianGuard ++
His Legacy will be Forever remembered
El cucy forever the peoples champ ❤
YES 100%
CSO!
he is a bum.
Tony: Who’s Tony?
Tony in his prime was a beast. He had insane cardio that many fighters could not hang with, he had unorthodox striking that was unpredictable and his elbows were like a sword. He can sprawl out of anything, and his ground game was deadly.
Tony was a guy who didn't get what he deserved from the UFC. Such a long win streak, he should've been given a title shot so much sooner, he just wasn't a marketable fighter at the time. Tony was such an unpredictable person and fighter, and that aided in his success. He was like a virus that a computer could not coordinate with. He could beat up so badly, but if the opponent slipped once, he would find that crack and he would flood any opening with crazy pressure until the opponent folded. He's one of my all time favorites, and honestly his whole career changed when he tripped on the cable that injured him, preventing him from getting the Khabib shot.
Tony would've been Khabib's toughest challenge had they ever fought. Yeah Tony is likely to lose that one, but he is also the fighter who could've surprised us and somehow caused an upset. Tony was so wild and unconventional that maybe it would've given Khabib's tried and true strategy some problems.
I would've loved to see Max Holloway move up and face Tony Ferguson at his prime at LW. Would've been an amazing display of cardio and movement
Tony was great untill he met the elite fighters of the devision. His fight against kevin lee already showed that he was never going to give khabib any problems.
And he has to thank god that he never fought poirier. Because that would’ve been a worst night than the fight against justin
Tony was always marketable! You just didn’t notice til Dana told you he was. He was a star when he beat lando cantata with that bloody ass farce in the final seconds of the last round. Dana just didn’t give him his shot when he deserved it cuz he was chugging Connor’s cock
@@cristobalbalenciaga7295 He won the RDA when he was at the first spot at the lightweight division and what you`re smoking?
@@atius8571 rda would always get destrroyed by the current top 5. Yes those guys were good back in their era, but the next era was better than the previous.
Tony won via decision. Eddie alvarez tko’d him. We all know what happened to eddie
He got what he deserved he got Gaethje, the guy who breaks him mentaly and end his cartier for good
I wonder how much is caused from mental health issues vs brain trauma. I know people who have never experienced any kind of concussion in their life but suffer from similar paranoia and manic episodes. I can't imagine adding brain trauma to these issues. I am glad to hear he was never physically violent to his wife, though, if that is any kind of silver lining. Truly wishing the best for him.
Like you said combine mental health issues and brain trauma together and add the fact that you are in the spotlight and yeah things are going to explode someday sad for sure and hoping for the best
He needs HBOT
Honestly I think it’s something you are born with, like schizophrenia. I’m not neurologist and brain trauma certainly does not help but I think brain trauma causes problems later in life when it becomes an issue. I think drugs are a lot more likely to cause psychosis and mental disorders. There’s research suggesting smoking weed makes you more likely to get psychosis.
Besides, his wife said he’s been acting delusional since 2011. His head hadn’t been beaten nearly as much as your average professional boxer.
Anyway I’m pretty sure the general consensus is that psychotic disorders come from genetics. It’s impossible to find out until they die and we cut up their brain.
Of course, there is still the case of Chris Benoit, the WWE wrestler who strangled his family to death due to mental problems from head trauma.
I think tony must be suffering from some sort of schizo-affective disorder (I am not a psychologist). Maybe he is already diagnosed but doesn’t want it to be known so he can keep fighting. Believing in demons, people in your walls, microchips in your knees. Cmon, that’s straight up schizophrenia.
I am no professional but because he has always been doing crazy things for a long time before he suffered any brutal beatdowns I would assume mental health is moreso a factor, the fights may not even play a factor into anything. He is capable of being a good man and it appears he usually is very much so but he has his down moments
For him it's obviously a combo, he should have seen a shrink 20-25 years ago for sure.
His wife is a champ though!
The most mystical to me is that both Tony and Khabib pulled equally
Then the pandemy comes when they tied 2-2 on pulling out
It was like fate itself that denied us of this fight...
I wonder why
Same it's like it's been written damn
The fight was not worth it, khabib doing his same old ground and pound for 5 rounds if tony toughs it out
Because it would have been the double knockout Tony is always predicting and ofc he must be denied.
Maybe Tony was denied a win 🤷♂️
Tony is a tragedy that should show how even the most tenacious, resilient, and talented of us still need support. You missed out by not getting into the conflict of interest w/his management, coaching/team issues and the weight cut craziness before the Gaethje fight. Or how his longest running coach Eddy Bravo is a conspiracy nut. Tony needed stable dependable people around him who would push back on his worse tendencies and instead it looks like Bravo only got to stick around that long because he provided zero pushback. It's not just bad luck, he was consistently thrown to the wolves and not a single person along the chain ever made a decision in his favor. No one survives that forever.
Tony shows that no amount of hardship earns you a break. You need people to depend on like everyone that became champ instead of him. All of them had coaches, teams and usually other people in their life committed to helping them.
What's the deal with his management and coaches?
well said
Something tells me Tony would be a very difficult person to coach
Shame Tonys career went down it did. Dude was a boogey man from 2013 to 2019. With insane cardio, unorthdox, decpetive power, and underrated offensive grappling. Crazy hes getting subbed by Nate, cause if they fought in their prime in 15-16, tony washes him with ease.
Tony would just make Nate bleed so badly back then
@@Ajayzmma he would've destroyed him so bad. Tony really is a shell of his former self
Truly the most heartbreak I’ve felt over a person I don’t Personally know
There’s a big mistake by Tony everybody seems to miss. The guy ended cutting weight twice in 2 weeks as he had prepared for Khabib. Since Khabib couldn’t travel, Justin replaced him on short notice. This resulted in Tony coming into the fight completely drained and exhausted. He looked like a skeleton that night and it clearly impacted his stamina. He wanted to get one over Khabib so bad that he stepped onto the scale (even though Khabib’s team announced that he couldn’t travel). Tony took photos of himself on the scale and mocked Khabib for running away. Prior to that, Tony had his famous accident at the Fox studios and ruptured his knee. Khabib already flew to the U.S. and went through training camp. So he cut the weight and showed up and kept asking the journalists “where is Tony Ferguson? I am here! Where is he?!”. Khabib did this knowing that Ferguson was in the hospital because in 2017, Tony took shots at him for missing weight and being hospitalized. When Khabib was in the hospital, Tony went to the press conference and mocked him and accused him or running away. He famously tweeted an insult called “cooking with Khabib”. This back and forth between them is what led to Tony cutting weight twice and coming into the Gaethje fight disfigured. After Justin killed Tony, the latter said “I had prepared for Khabib and not Justin Gaethje”. Ultimately, his obsession with Khabib was the key in his downfall and costed him his interim title, his title shot and his sanity. To this day, he still tweets or mentions Khabib after every single defeat…
Another person mentioned the double cut and it's mentioned alot when talked about Tony, not to this extent though, good job!
Tony has som for of obsessive behaviour for sure, I think he has always had mental health problems in combination with CTE.
His wife said it started after TUF, maybe he got bonked on the dome and some wires just crossed or some shit, I mean who knows.
I missed this essential piece of information in the video and was looking through the comments looking for this. The double weight cut has to be mentioned in the video. I think that things could have gone different for Tony if he didn't do that. He could have beaten Justin on a good day but I honestly don't think he would have ever beaten Khabib. Still sad for him that he didn't fight him and found out if he could or could not beat him. As a Khabib fan I always had mixed feelings about how Khabib was bullying him verbally, because it was clear at some point that he had some mental issues.
I don't see how that explains his poor striking technique and inability to make adaptations during his fight against Gaethje. Sure, it was stupid for Tony to drain himself for no reason after he knew the fight was off, but his loss had nothing to do with his condition.
@@boshi9 his brain wasn’t working because he went through the most draining process in this sport twice in one week, at least that’s my interpretation.
@@raahym These mistakes were always present in his fights, e.g. he tends to overextend when punching and stays in a vulnerable position for too long. Michael Johnson was able to capitalize on that 8 years before Justin.
I’m glad you brought up his behavior on the ultimate fighter, I think it’s important to understand the type of guy tony is, plus cte equals a disaster waiting to happen
I really hope Tony doesn't become MMA's Chris Benoit...
@@madgavin7568 He will (Sideshow Bob evil laugh 😈🤣)
@@simonsaid3333Bruh
@@simonsaid3333 Not funny, edgelord
@@madgavin7568 I've been saying this myself. Mental instability + 3 lifetimes worth of brain trauma is almost a guaranteed tragedy
Even though I'm really dissappointed in the DUI (could have killed people), I will never stop rooting for him. It's always Tony time in my heart.
In regards to CTE, it’s going to be incredibly interesting as UFC fighters age.
CTE doesn’t just go away once you stop getting knocked out, it only doesn’t progress as fast.
The sad fact is, that there have been countless football, rugby players and boxers who retire, aren’t heard from for about 10-15 years, and when you hear from them it was just after some horrible episode.
Not only to get CTE which impacts every aspect of life, from social skills, paranoia, physical speech mechanics, emotional stability but to then loose doing something that you loved to do, or gave you some value/purpose/ability to provide is fucking rough.
I just hope tony goes off into the sunset peacefully. He genuinely was my favorite fighter during his prime. Thats STILL MY BOI !!!!!!🙏🏾😭
Gaethje vs Ferguson was absolutely the end for Ferguson. He took way too much damage during that fight. Idk how his corner allowed him to receive that much punishment and expected him to come back for his next fights like he would be the same person. Sometimes to save a career you gotta throw in the towel; you gotta save a really tough fighter from their own toughness. Bro was literally too tough for his own good with a corner like that ngl. They must’ve thought he really was invincible
I always remember this man. Thank you Tony Ferguson
Tony's a beast, but that fight with Gaethje was life-altering. That was the worst beating I've seen without there being a ko. Tony's got a great chin, but it was an absolute curse in that fight.
The last round hurt me just by watching it...gaetje gave him a beating of a lifetime. Khabib would have just chocked him out at least
@@carlopedersoli4844 That last punch before Herb Dean stepped in. Tony just walked away, shaking his head as if to say "enough!" It was like something broke inside. And he's never been the same since. That fire he had, sadly, is gone.
Tony reminds me a lot of Junior Dos Santos after the two Cain fights. Those fights were also horrific beatings and similar to Tony, JDS seemed slow afterwards.
Hold on, im still crying brother. Man got put to sleep by bobby green. BOBBY. GREEN. I fell nothing but pain.
Yep. But in my head he knocked Bobby out clean in the first, same like Justin at the end of the second, idfk... too sad... but at least black beast got his switch knee, so it looks like there's a God after all...
I blame the eye swipe BG pulled.
@kapkam515 you right, Tony shifted momentum his way by setting that pawn down, that's when that dirty mfer went full prong. I don't think Tony could see, b/c he kept eating that left after that.
Tony the type to ruin his life just so that he can have an even bigger comeback
“The fall is just as dramatic as the rise!!”
I hope Tony gets the help he needs and accepts it as well
can't really bounce back from brain damage man. that shit is permanent
Unpopular Opinion , Tony never fighting khabib is probably the best thing that's ever happened to him . The fight never needed to happen because the rivalry that they had was more entertaining than the fight would've been . If it did happen the first time Khabib could've beaten him senseless and his career would've ended there .
209 Khabib's boxing was bad. That was probably Tony's window of opportunity. After his leg injury, that window began to close and after Gaethje, it slammed shut.
He could have never ever defeated khabib its not even close and anyone who believes Tony had the abilities to defeat an all time great like that does not understand what they see when they watch fighting. Tony struggled against many lower level fighters and it is evident that Khabib destroys him
@@City0fTroy There was a time when Ferguson vs Khabib would have been a very competitive matchup especially around the first and second time they were scheduled to fight. I think in 2020, Khabib would have definitely won. To say that Tony struggled against lower level fighters is nonsense when Khabib struggled against Tibau whereas Ferguson submitted Tibau and many other similar fighters they fought.
@@City0fTroy most of khabib's record are cab drivers and fought not a single elite grappler
😂😂😂
He was guaranteed a title shot and could sit until Oct but went on fighting Gaethje
worst decision :(
Gaethje was a title fight
@@gamebred6995 it turned out to become an interim fight. Tony should just wait to get the Khabib fight and Gaethje might fight that night too but not Tony obviously and not an interim one as well.
Saved America, he did. And singlehandedly made it possible for all sports to be played again in the future. No small feat. I credit him with defeating the pandemic. He is a hero in my book.
It’s wild to think that the tide really turned for him when he tripped over a camera cable while wearing his sunglasses inside, and injured his knee. This was right after he won the interim belt and was set to fight Khabib. At that point, he was also addressing and working his mental health.
This is sad bit still makes me appreciate and respect Khabib for leaving on his on terms and finishing at the peak of his career, most fighters stop when its too late
That beating Justin put on him was about 2 minutes away from becoming lethal. I feel for the guy. That fight was sanctioned attempted murder.
That Justin fight will forever live in my nightmares
Corners fault
@@conor9345 Conor's fault*
@@anon9060 lol
Remember, future fighters...never ever make career decisions for the fans. They ain't gonna pay your bills when your body is too broken to entertain them anymore
Probably the most monumental fall from grace. Maybe only after liddell and barao.
BJ Penn as well maybe?
His is the second worst ever or maybe on par with BJ
@@dar540 BJ is the worst
@@anon2427 Yeah his was pretty bad. Mark Kerr as well is another sad one.
My legend. I started putting in work watching tony. But I lost motivation. Gonna start training again
I almost dropped the UFC after his second loss 😭
I love el cucuy
His wife said his behavior took a turn for the worse when he tore his ankle before the khabib fight. Imagine getting the same biggest fight of your life rescheduled 3 times and the 4th time you tear your lcl on a wire where you're promoting the fight. Brutal, but not as brutal as his new DUI.
That’s way, way more brutal than a DUI….
Honestly man, 2 weight cuts and still he went toe to toe with Gaethje for those first 2 rounds. It was only in round 3 where he started to fade. Poor Tony. And to me, Gaethje's never had a better performance. And a big part of that was thanks to Whitman for literally calming and guiding his emotions.
letting someone poor water on your head isn't a harmless joke, can't let someone disrespect you like that
Just watched tony lose tonight (ufc 291) and he seemed okay at first but boy the rest was sad
Tony did 2 weight cuts back to back and has never been the same since that.
Ufc needs to induct Tony in the hall of fame to give him the sense he’s done honestly I really think he needs some sort of merit to end his amazing career
who’s revisiting after he just put down one glove 😢
It went from it's Tony time, to it's time Tony😢
My favorite fighter ever.
The only time I ever cried watching any sporting event was during the Gaethje fight.
tony the type of guy to bring 19 people to an 18+ movie
Man I was worried for tony after the chandler knockout. Ive only been watching ufc for about two years max but that was definitely the longest I've seen someone out for in the Octagon
We all love you tony, pray you get better soon man 🙌🏼
Great videos lately. My favourite boxing/MMA channel on RUclips. Keep it up
He was never all there in the head and I heard rumors of him using meth. His wife had to leave the house for a while because he thought robots were chasing him or something like that. He was my favorite fighter to watch in the UFC. He didn’t look the same when he came back from his injury. So idk if it’s addiction or just the CTE but something definitely changed in him.
I've always figured he might be bipolar. Adding brain trauma to that makes it even worse.
Hold on brother, he wasn't exactly just outclassed by MJ, his hand was broken in the first round, that's a pretty major injury, incredible that he even survives it
If violence was art, prime Tony Ferguson was Salvador Dalí
Having a maniac brain helped him and at the same time made him worse, man I wish the best for tony :(
Tony the type of guy to wake up his wife just let her know that he’s going to sleep.
This video was put together so well. Really good job on all levels.
EGO is a tricky frequency if you cant match it in manipulative society we live today you can go wrong wrong ways...hope Tony realises that he has done to much for sport people and world and no alcohol or drug will make him better than his hardwork and creativity already gave him
"What is dead may never die but rises again harder and stronger
Its so sad we love you Tony!
An important fact that was left out of this video: Tony did TWO weight cuts in 3 weeks before the Gaethje fight. I truly believe it was the 2 weight cuts plus the damage taken from Justin that ended Tony's career
The myth the legend, El cucuy 😈
Khabib haters still believe a prime Tony would've beat him 😂😂
Tonys the type of guy to get arrested for ankle picking a moving vehicle
Well at least we have prime tony vs Khabib…
Not related to the video, But can you make Manny Pacquiao video. I can see your pfp is him. Anyways whoever is reading this, I hope you have a good day.
I remember his behavior in the TUF house was pretty bad, but I had forgotten how bad. When people are drunk, they show who they really are. I thought he had left all that behind, but I guess not. I had not heard about the DUI. Fighting is a cruel game. You take people that are comfortable with violence, and then beat the impulse control out of them. It is sad, but this is what our lust for the fight game produces. I hope the best for Tony. His fighting style was fun to watch, but it has cost him dearly. CTE makes these athletes do things that get them hurt. Evan Tanner, Matt Hughes, War Machine, now Tony. They may very well had done these things without the concussions, but let’s be real, why take the chance? I am sorry to all these guys that cannot form complete sentences (Tito was like that before his first fight so I don’t blame CTE for that) and there is A LOT of living to be done after the age of 35. When you are 20, life is long and you are invincible. But CTE is not obvious to the victim right away. Concussions were a badge of honor when I was in High School. Playing through dizziness and a headache meant you would never let down the team. But, in my opinion, they are the scariest injuries because of the long term effects. The worst that could happen to a broken leg would be an amputation. But dementia at 35 is way more messed up than losing a leg.
dont compare tony to that piece of shit war machine. what war machine did was not CTE induced, he's just an evil human being...
@@ShakezFXmix of both
Some of Tonys later fights were really hard to see. You just knew, he can’t give up and he probably would’ve benefited from having a weak chin. CTE is no joke and the most spectacular fighters are often the brawlers who take and dish the most damage. Really hope he gets the help he needs, but I’m afraid of what can happen when his brain is irreparably damaged
It’s worth mentioning that Tony choose to cut weight twice very close to fighting Justin. I remember seeing him post about it on social media. I’m not sure how much that effected him but it surely did not help. 😭
Reminder that Bobby was getting rocked until the eye poke, which completely changed the momentum of the fight. Tony still has El Cucuy in him and can do the work, and as much as I want to see him keep fighting...he should hang it up. Absolutely heartbreaking seeing my favorite fighter go through this. The things he did to people in the ring was terrifying, in such a good way.
This man could've been fighting conor rn hadn't he got front kicked 😢. That was the last chance for him.
this man should've fought Conor McGregor back in 2017/18 but Conor decided to box with Mayweather instead of facing Tony Ferguson.
Same bro his loss streak has totally broken my heart
Sad that CTE is almost definitely playing a part, however Drunk driving is just absurdly disgusting.
It wouldn't have been the worst if he came out of the accident the only casualty, call me heartless but I'd rather it be him than anyone else due to HIS stupid fucked up decision.
Tony was a head case when he started MMA. Repeated blows to the head will not help with this pre-existing condition.
here after Tony Ferguson got choked out by bobby green of all people. SMH.
Unfortunately you really can’t fix crazy, and that’s my diagnosis of Tony.
Tony is a manic depressive with paranoid traits. I’ve seen this plenty of times before. It’s normally around tony’s age when these problems really start showing themselves. I think fighting was like a bandage for his mental state. Maybe fighting was a grounding experience for him and now that he doesn’t have that outlet anymore, things are getting worse.
There are fighters like Ferguson and Pena that couldn't hold down regular jobs and finish vocational training. They were fortunate to become pro fighters
Thanks doctor
he has brain damage it gets worse with age.
Hasn't been the same since the gaethje fight. The level of damage and trauma he took would change anyone. Thankfully no one got hurt during the crash. Hope he is doing okay and gets help.
he lost again...
I don't want to see fighters get CTE because i like "exciting" fights. This is why i love wrestlers and graplers.
No, when you're a cocky punk that refuses to be humble and respectful then it isn't sad, it's a hard lesson that simply didn't need to be that way.
Demons getting Tony this hard truly breaks my heart, and i hardly feel something for another person i don't know personally.
Tony was my favourite for years, that gaethje fight broke my heart, man. I do think those brutal weight cuts played a part in that fight.
I’m calling it… tony is gonna do a crazy 180 after this and be champ in the years to come.
That call from his wife I believe happened before his loosing streak. It’s sad he will forever be my favorite MMA Fighter but his fall was so hard to watch
Reading the comments here I just don't see why everybody is hating Tony for the double weight cut decision. The fight was cancelled for the fifth time, Tony doesn't get any privilege from the UFC. If he decided not to fight Gaethje, then the same story would have repeated where they made Prorier fought Max leaving Tony into the darkness. Only if he was ever supported by the UFC. The man was stripped of his interim title, and then had to make a comeback in 5 months after a catastrophic knee injury.
Age caught up... Everybody was avoiding Tony until his end prime.. :/
It’s so sad to see Tony going this. I pray he gets the help he needs. He’s been one of my favorites for a long time now. He had so many memorable fights. No matter what his legacy will live on forever
I don’t think anyone thought Tony was gonna beat Beneil. Good breakdown though it’s really sad how quickly guys can tumble in fighting
next to Anderson Silva the saddest fall from grace in UFC history
Kept telling people that UFC event with Nate and Khamzat mix up was not a screw job on Nate. That shit was a screw job on Tony.
Hey, thanks for the saddest thumbnail in the world.
TJ I love the MMA content as well. Tony is my hero and sucks to see.
I remember the first time I heard Tony talk was on one of those old UFC Fox RUclips shows. They were ranking nicknames and Tony put himself at first, and I was like "who tf is this guy? He hasn't even done anything to earn that nickname." My wife grew up in a religious Mexican household and when I asked her what cucuy meant, she gasped lol, Mexicans legit are scared of that name, I thought it was hilarious. He was about 4 fights into his 12 fight streak, I watched him the entire time. Very quickly he became my favorite fighter, and I'll stan for him over Khabib all day everyday. I don't think Tony has anything left, I just hope he opens a gym and finds some stability in training upcoming killers.
He already has a little gym he built himself and trains some guys - it's more of a cult of personality type thing, but critically been a massive cf of a distraction for his actual training.
There was no "downfall" Father Time is just undefeated.
All time favorite fighter and the scariest fighter in his prime. Very sad to see his downfall but it was somehow expected given his crazy violent style.
Sunglasses has always been a little bit stupid.
He has spewed more nonsense than the entire UFC roster combined.
There was a Chechen fighter who publicly congratulated a teenager for beheading a French school teacher. I forget his name but he was KOed by michel pereira and was released
2:40 One of the coldest pictures from the UFC. The only one that beats it imo is Bisping's face before his last round against Silva. Even colder.
Ive always had a problem with the weight cut pull out for Khabib and Tony 3rd try. Injuries, the pandemic, and health complications are understandable if they are out of your control. However, getting hospitalized for a severe weight cut is something you control. Tony would've probably lost dont get me wrong, but still it's BS IMO