After much speculation, Tony Ferguson finally has a new fight booked, and it will come against Beneil Dariush at UFC 262 on May 15th.
Less than two years ago Ferguson was riding a stellar 12-fight winning streak that finally had him on the verge of a long-awaited title showdown with Khabib Nurmagomedov last year, but when the champion withdrew due to Covid-19 restrictions, he had to go up against Justin Gaethje instead.
That proved to be Ferguson’s undoing as Gaethje would TKO him in the fifth round of that fight, and he’s since gone on to drop a decision loss to Charles Oliveira as well, which has led to him sliding down to No.5 on the 155lb rankings.
Meanwhile, Dariush has been the on the ascent, putting together a six-fight winning streak over the past few years that’s seen him flex both his submission and striking skills, though he had to settle for a split-decision win over Carlos Diego Ferreira last time out.
Dariush is now ranked No.9 in the division, so a win over a big name fighter like Ferguson could be just what he needs to propel him into the top 5.
Ferguson vs. Dariush joins a UFC 262 card that does not yet have a headliner, but will also feature the likes of Edson Barboza vs. Shane Burgos, Kaitlyn Chookagian vs. Viviane Araujo and Andrea Lee vs. Antonina Shevchenko.
