Justin Gaethje recently shared his assessment of former foe Tony Ferguson’s legendary chin.
Gaethje faced Ferguson in 2020 at UFC 249 for the interim lightweight championship. At that time, Ferguson was riding a 12-fight winning streak and was widely regarded as one of the best, most unbreakable, and well-rounded 155-pounders.
However, Gaethje finally managed to stop “El Cucuy” in Round 5 by TKO at UFC 249.
“The Highlight” dog walked and dismantled Ferguson for more than 20 minutes but failed to knock him out cold. A bloodied-up Ferguson tried to control the center of the octagon even in the fifth frame until Gaethje, who had turned Ferguson’s face into a horror movie scene, finally managed to wobble the latter. “El Cucuy” tried to survive by circling the octagon, but referee Herb Dean had seen enough and stepped in to stop the fight.
Recently, Gaethje discussed Ferguson’s impressive chin during an interview with Full Send MMA. He added that Ferguson was “crazy enough to work out for eight hours a day,” something he believes helped “El Cucuy” maintain excellent oxygen flow to the brain, due to which the latter could make quick decisions during fights and “understand the danger” he is in to avoid it. The UFC lightweight champ said:
“Tony Ferguson is as primal as they come. If you can provide oxygen to the core of your brain, you won’t go to sleep. Fight or flight is human. Understanding the danger you’re in makes a good chin.”
Check out Justin Gaethje’s comments about Tony Ferguson below:
Tony Ferguson finally found success in 2025
After the Justin Gaethje loss, Tony Ferguson went on to lose seven more fights before ultimately retiring in 2024. However, outside the UFC, Ferguson found success in the squared circle, where he finally snapped his 8-fight losing streak. Last year, he knocked out Salt Papi and grabbed the MFB interim middleweight title. He then defeated Warren Spencer to become the MFB middleweight champion.
Justin Gaethje, on the other hand, defeated Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 to capture the interim lightweight gold, and then at UFC Freedom 250, he dethroned Ilia Topuria in Round 4 by TKO (corner’s stoppage).
The 37-year-old American plans to defend his title a couple of times, potentially next year, before retiring, and has shown interest in fighting top contender Arman Tsarukyan.
