Previous UFC Title Holder Proposes Ideal Combat for Donald Cerrone's Return Bout
It's clear that Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone isn't going to let anyone halt his return to the UFC.
Cerrone himself desires two more bouts under the UFC flag to hit the 50-fight milestone, and ex-UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping believes he's found an ideal opponent for Cerrone.
"The match-up that most people would agree on, if he's still active and not retired yet, is a rematch with Tony Ferguson," Bisping mentioned on his "Believe You Me" podcast.
I've suggested this comeback fight for Cerrone as well, and former lightweight competitor Paul Felder shares the perspective.
"Yeah, but that would have to be at least at 170, right? That makes sense," Felder stated. "And that's a guy like, alright, you lost to him years ago. Ferguson's been going through a really tough phase for a long time now. It's two fighters that the UFC probably wouldn't want to see in action, so what better way to give them both their contract-related fights than to arrange this match-up?"
Ferguson managed to outpoint Cerrone in Chicago at UFC 238 in June 2018, marking Ferguson's last victory. Both Cerrone and Ferguson are way past their best years. Majority of fans think Ferguson should retire and that Cerrone, who is already a Hall of Famer, should hang up his gloves.
UFC President Dana White has voiced his disapproval of Cerrone coming back, but he's also mentioned his preference for Ferguson to retire. Somehow, I don't believe this will deter either fighter from stepping back into the Octagon.
Ferguson took to social media to hint at a fight in 2025. Is it a possibility that preliminary discussions for a rematch with Cerrone have already taken place? I wouldn't label it absurd.
If this fight eventuates, I'd anticipate it landing on the main card of an upcoming pay-per-view or as the main event of a Fight Night card during the summer.
Besides the buzz surrounding a possible Ferguson-Cerrone rematch, UFC fight news has been quite active in the New Year.
No. 8 flyweight Asu Almabayev will face No. 9 Steve Erceg on March 1. Ali Abdelaziz, the manager for former bantamweight and flyweight champion Henry Cejudo, mentioned that his client is likely to return to the Octagon in February or March, competing at 135 pounds.
Just before the New Year, numerous other fights were announced, including Kelvin Gastelum vs. Joe Pyfer at middleweight and Calvin Kattar vs. Youssef Zalal.
The events scheduled for the first quarter of the year are shaping up nicely. The first event on the calendar takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on January 11.
Here's a look at the complete card:
- Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas - Strawweight
- Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris - Welterweight
- Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. César Almeida - Middleweight
- Chris Curtis vs. Roman Kopylov - Middleweight
- Austin Bashi vs. Christian Rodriguez - Featherweight
- Punahele Soriano vs. Uroš Medić - Welterweight
- Jose Johnson vs. Felipe Bunes - Flyweight
- Marco Túlio vs. Ihor Potieria - Middleweight
- Thiago Moisés vs. Trey Ogden - Lightweight
- Andreas Gustafsson vs. Preston Parsons - Welterweight
- Ernesta Kareckaite vs. Nicolle Caliari - Flyweight
- Magomed Gadzhiyasulov vs. Bruno Lopes - Light Heavyweight
- Viktoriia Dudakova vs. Fatima Kline - Strawweight
- Nurullo Aliev vs. Yanal Ashmouz - Lightweight
Cerrone aims to secure two more fights in the UFC, with UFC 313 and UFC 314 potentially on his horizon. Interestingly, UFC President Dana White has expressed disapproval of Cerrone's return, but not Tony Ferguson's retirement. Ferguson, who has previously defeated Cerrone at UFC 238, hinted at a potential rematch in 2025, fueling speculation about preliminary discussions for the match-up.
