Ferguson: Khabib, McGregor need to retire

Tony Ferguson believes two of the best lightweights on the planet, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor, should walk away from the sport.

"I'm gonna be real. (Nurmagomedov) and McNuggets, they both need to f------ retire," Ferguson said during a UFC 249 conference call Tuesday, according to MMA H.E.A.T. "The only two real men out there right now are gonna be me and Justin Gaethje. America, motherf-----s."

Ferguson is scheduled to fight Gaethje for the interim lightweight title in the UFC 249 main event Saturday in Jacksonville. "El Cucuy" was originally slated to fight Nurmagomedov, the current 155-pound champion, but the Russian was forced out of the contest due to travel restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic. That April 18 event was later postponed.

After Nurmagomedov withdrew from the fight - the fifth time Nurmagomedov-Ferguson has been canceled since 2015 - Ferguson called for the UFC to strip him of his belt. On Monday, the 36-year-old declared his bout against Gaethje is for the "real championship."

"F--- Khabib. I'm defending my belt for the third time," said Ferguson, who held the interim lightweight title from October 2017 to April 2018. "This is for the real belt."

Ferguson and McGregor have never been scheduled to fight each other, though the bout made sense a few years ago; McGregor was the lightweight champion when Ferguson won the interim strap.