Top 10 Reasons You Don’t Have to Worry About Ferguson vs. Khabib Finally Happening

You can do it. You are just 10 days away from seeing a dream become a reality. All the years of patience, grit, and determination have led you to this special event, and you are ready. You have never been more ready.

You are ready for Tony Ferguson to try to back up his talk of a flawless victory to blemish a flawless record.

Oh, and you are so ready for Khabib Nurmagomedov to try and go to 26-0 and remind the MMA world what a true undisputed lightweight champion looks like.

Yes, my fellow fight fan, you are ready for Ferguson vs. Khabib.

We all are.

We are 10 days away from the phenomenon that is Ferguson vs. Khabib at UFC 223. According to “Tony and Khabib Time,” we’re now in the red zone for the Eagle touching down in Brooklyn. And upon his arrival, “El Cucuy” will be there waiting to derail his ascension. And us? We’ll just be here waiting.

Ten days. Just 10 days away.  We can do this! It’s totally happening this time! But hey, I get it. I understand your anxiety. I understand your flat-out trepidation, what with three failed attempts at making this dream fight a reality and all, most notably last year’s nightmare scenario that brought us to the brink only for what was, for me, the biggest letdown of 2017. It is this empathy for what you have gone through that has brought me here today. Don’t you worry, you fragile fight-fan spirit, you. I am here to alleviate those concerns. Ten days out from the phenomenon of Ferguson vs. Khabib, I am here to soothe you with the top 10 reasons why you should not be worried about Ferguson vs. Khabib happening this time around.

#10: The Law of Averages

Khabib and Tony have been scheduled to fight on three different occasions, but as we all know, each time, the fight fell through. In the UFC 223 press conference a couple of months ago, a reporter asked Dana White if the UFC had a contingency plan in place in the event the fight falls through again. By the way, I don’t understand the whole “contingency plan” notion. There is no such thing as a contingency plan. You can’t replicate Tony vs. Khabib. You may have contingency plans for an undercard fight or even a non-title fight on the main card. Sometimes, as we saw in the last PPV which had a title fight fall through, you might be able to come up with a solid contingency plan for a failed title fight. But you cannot find something remotely near equal value to a Tony vs. Khabib fight, especially after these years of anticipation. There is no contingency plan for 25-fight win streak vs. 10-fight win streak. Why not just ask, “Will Tony or Khabib still fight someone else on the card if the other doesn’t make it?” Because there is no contingency plan for a fight like this. But I digress. Anyway, Dana responded to the reporter stating that, no, he was hoping that the fourth time would be the charm. In other words, Dana was banking on the law of averages.

The law of averages holds that over a large enough sample size, deviations from the norm will be balanced out eventually. For example, if it rains three days in a row, on the fourth day, we should see sunshine since, of course, it will have to stop raining eventually. Contrary to what seems to be the perception, Khabib has fought in more fights than he has pulled out of, as has Tony. Therefore, on average, they are more likely to compete in fights they are booked for than they are to pull out. So with three cancelled fights between this particular booking and with both men being more likely to appear for a scheduled fight than not, the law of averages certainly applies here. Furthermore, this is the last week of hard training. Next week is primarily media. And since we are already halfway through this week, the law and averages is definitely in full effect.

#9: They’ve Both Got You Covered

Apparently, I’m not the only person who wants to alleviate the fears of the MMA world. Just follow Khabib and Tony’s Twitter and/or Instagram, and you’ll see daily updates on their moods, how their training is going, and whatever happens to be on their minds at the time, which has not included any inkling of injury or pulling out. So if you’re like me and you want to rest easy every night knowing that the fight is still on, just give the ol’ neighborhood MMA fighters a friendly cyberstalk before bed time like yours truly to put your mind at ease.

#8:  Too Much Is At Stake

More is at stake in this fight than any other time these two fighters have been booked against one another, let alone anyone else. The biggest concern pull-out wise is Khabib, and you have to imagine that after dreaming for this moment his entire life and after being hospitalized and being unsure of his MMA future after last year’s UFC 209 cancellation, this man is going to do everything in his power to make it to the Octagon on the 7th. Furthermore, even if an injury were to occur between now and then, it wouldn’t be the first time fighters fought with an injury. In fact, not too long ago, a fighter fought at a whopping 30%! (Just kidding, I love ya, Kamaru!)

No, but if many fighters of the past have gutted through to perform for fights with much less at stake, it figures that with two fighters very aware of the narrative that surrounds this fight and with someone like Khabib, who knows what he lost physically and spiritually last year after his fight with Tony fell apart in the winding hours of the UFC 209 buildup, and seeing how close he is once again to this fight he has been longing for finally happening, I believe it will take an unnatural disaster to keep this “Eagle” grounded.

#7: Khabib Has Changed Training Habits

Ever since his last injury pull-out back in December of 2015, Khabib has stated that he has changed some things. After the many injuries that have plagued Khabib’s career, he was forced to drastically change his training habits, making it less likely that he would be injured leading to a fight again.

#6: Khabib Hasn’t Pulled Out From Injury Recently

Khabib’s change of training habits has paid dividends. He has been injured since 2015, as he underwent back surgery just last year, but he has not had an injury pull-out of any of his last three fights that he has been scheduled for. So this number on the list is a combination of #7 and #10: If Khabib has not pulled out due to injury in any of his last three booked fights and is now facing an opponent whom he was twice unable to fight, it’s logical to believe his training habits will not fail him now and lead to a fourth cancellation between the two.

#5: Khabib Changed Diet

After UFC 209, Khabib changed everything nutrition and weight-management wise that led to him being unable to make weight for UFC 209. You hear that, Tony? No more #TiramisuTuesdays!

#4: Khabib Weighed in with Ease Last Fight

Don’t take Khabib’s word for #5; there is evidence. He weighed in with ease for his bout against Edson Barboza at UFC 219 and looked quite comfortable doing so. So we can expect him to do it again a week from Saturday. This concludes the Khabib quartet of why you shouldn’t be concerned about the UFC 223 main event happening.

#3: Tony Ferguson Never Pulls Out

The only time this man pulled out is when he had lung problems. We’re talking about internal organs. In other words, as long as Tony’s organs are functioning, we should be good.

#2: It Is Inevitable, My Friends

So let’s just say the worst happens. The unthinkable. And #10-#3 do not pan out and Ferguson vs. Khabib is cancelled for a fourth time. (Shudders) As much as it pains you to read that, believe me, it’s taking everything in me not to hit the backspace button and erasing that thought from my mind. But for just a moment, let’s say it happens. Tony Ferguson has won 10 straight fights and has at least 3-4 top-level years ahead of him at the minimum, judging by the way he has looked and the way he trains. Khabib….well, Khabib is Khabib. He’s 25-0 and under 30 years of age. My point is this: These two are going to fight. Whether the damn MMA Gods like it or not, eventually, barring a career-ending injury, it is inevitable that these two will meet while still in their primes. Because even if the law of averages failed this time, it would have to fail yet again next time, and yet again the time after that.

Don’t believe me? Just look at history. When have two men at this high a level who exhibited such dominance over the same division not eventually faced one another? The closest example I can think of is Jon Jones and Anthony Johnson. But I would argue that while Johnson put together many dominant performances, he was not a dominant threat in the division for several years the way Tony and Khabib have been. Furthermore, if both Jones and Johnson were still active, I still believe that fight would have eventually happened. Well, Tony and Khabib are not going anywhere, and no two fighters who have been dominant for years in the same division have managed to avoid one another forever. So even if the unspeakable happens, you can still relax. In the long run, this fight WILL happen.

#1: The Contingency Plan

So remember that little aside earlier about how there is no such thing as a contingency plan for a Ferguson vs. Khabib fight? I mean, the fight in itself is a phenomenon that so far has literally been too good to be true. How could there be a contingency plan for such a phenomenon of a fight? How could there be a contingency plan for 25-fight win streak vs. 10-fight win streak and the fascinating clash of styles that is Ferguson vs. Khabib? Who would be able to step in and fix a situation where we see a fourth cancellation between the two? Well, I think I’m going to go ahead and walk those comments about there being no possible contingency plan back. Because, as it happens, I know a guy…

The same guy who indirectly claims that he is staying ready for this card. Yeah, you might have heard of him. Some dude named Conor. Wait, what’s that? You scoff? This does not put your mind at ease? Wh–why not? I mean, granted, there is no replacing a Ferguson vs. Khabib fight. That, I stand by. But if we are talking about the worst-case scenario, if we are planning for if #10-3 all fail and we are left without a once-in-a-lifetime fight for the main event, what better contingency plan than another epic, if not once-in-a-lifetime fight to replace it?

What’s that? Still not buying it? Well, I don’t see why not. After all, surely, a man who is the current champion in the division would fight in a bout where his own belt is on the line. Surely, this isn’t a radical concept. And surely, if #10-3 fail us, we can count on Conor to step in and save the day as he was willing to do just one short month ago. Surely, this is the contingency plan we can count on…the ultimate contingency plan that can put all our minds at ease as we await the day that Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov eventually face one another. Surely, a man who tweeted out, “Stay Ready” two weeks out from a fight for his own belt would step in to remedy the situation, especially after JUST offering to do exactly that for another division only weeks ago…

Right?

Be sure to stick with MMANews.com daily for the latest breaking news in the MMA world and also follow MMA Logic on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MMALogic/

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