Charles Oliveira reacts to Tony Ferguson's half-hearted semi-retirement at UFC Abu Dhabi after eighth straight loss

Charles Oliveira sent a heartfelt message to Tony Ferguson after 'El Cucuy' decided to hang up the gloves, for now. At the recent UFC Abu Dhabi event, Ferguson suffered a first-round submission loss against Michael Chiesa in the welterweight division.

This was Ferguson's eighth straight defeat, marking the longest loss skid in UFC history. After the fight, Ferguson announced that he was walking away from the sport for now. As a custom, UFC fighters leave their gloves inside the octagon to announce retirement. However, Ferguson left only one, to keep the door open for a potential comeback.

A former interim champion and the first fighter in the lightweight division to amass a double-digit win streak, Ferguson is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats. Fans and fellow fighters showered praise on Ferguson as he walked off into the sunset.

One such fighter was former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, who shared his thoughts on Ferguson's retirement in a heartfelt post on X:

"Thank you @TonyFergusonXT! We love you, all respect... The decision is up to you. An honour to share the Octagon with you back in 2020. #UFCAbuDhabi"

Oliveira defeated Ferguson at UFC 256 in December 2020 to earn a shot at the vacant UFC lightweight title. Ferguson, a top-three lightweight at the time, was credited for allowing the then-rising contender to fight him despite a clear gap in their rankings.

After starting his UFC journey by winning 'The Ultimate Fighter' Season 13 welterweight tournament, 'El Cucuy' did his best work in the lightweight division. The California native amassed a 12-fight win streak and was considered the best lightweight at the time, alongside his archrival Khabib Nurmagomedov.

However, Ferguson suffered a steep downfall after the lopsided UFC 249 defeat in 2020 against Justin Gaethje, which has delivered a severe blow to his legacy in the sport.

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