"The level of competition obviously needs to drop" - Daniel Cormier advises Tony Ferguson to look down the rankings for his next opponent
Daniel Cormier thinks Tony Ferguson needs to take a step back in terms of the level of competition to find success once again. Cormier believes there is a lot of confusion regarding the situation with 'El Cucuy', as the price tag for him is still quite high.
While discussing the recent downfall of Tony Ferguson on DC & Helwani, Cormier mentioned it is quite sad to see some of the greatest fighters fall from the grace of success in such fashion.
Cormier added that the likes of Tony Ferguson eventually ended up losing fights that one wouldn't expect them to lose in the earlier stages of their careers. But that seems to be the case for some of the aging fighters in the UFC.
"I think Tony needs to take a step back and the level of competition, obviously needs to drop, and then we need to see where he goes," Cormier said. "I think it's a lot of confusion because the price tag is high for a guy like Tony Ferguson. I don't know what happens but a lot of our great champions go out like this. They lose in fights we never would've expected them to lose in the past."
Tony Ferguson once again lost at UFC 262
DC added that the problem with Tony Ferguson taking a step back in terms of rankings could lead to him potentially fighting the lightweight savages around the #15 ranking and below.
Cormier mentioned that the lower-ranked fighters would try and take advantage of Ferguson's scenario and use him as a stepping stone to enter the rankings or go higher.
"Yeah, Tony needs a guy that is a little bit back in terms of the rankings," Cormier added. "But the problem is he is fighting at lightweight, where the guys that are even at the back in the rankings are absolute savages. I mean, think, Islam Makhachev just busted into the Top 10. He is just #10 now so when you start getting back around #15, who is #15? Guys like Drew Dober, who is an absolute savage.
"I mean it's gonna take a big step back but those guys who are the step back are looking at Tony Ferguson and going, 'That is my stepping stone into the rankings,'" Cormier continued. "So it's a tough situation and talking to Tony last week, he is much more aware of everything. He gave up the control of a lot of his training to new coaches and old coaches. He is doing the right things, it's just a matter of him finding a way to reinvent himself to a degree in order to find some success."
Tony Ferguson suffered yet another loss at UFC 262 when he was beaten by Beneil Dariush. 'El Cucuy' was mostly dominated by his opponent and barely got any offense on Dariush throughout the fight.