UFC 234 is barely upon us, but Dana White is already looking well into the future. The UFC president spoke with MMAJunkie in Melbourne, Australia before the big the inter-generational clash of Israel Adesanya and Anderson Silva in UFC 234's main event. Not only did he outline his plans for Daniel Cormier should the Heavyweight Champ for three more fights, but he also pegged Tony Ferguson as the fighter most deserving of a shot at Khabib Nurmagomedov's UFC title, when lightweight champion returns from suspension.
If you'll recall, Khabib Nurmagomedov jumped the fence at UFC 229 after securing a submission victory over Conor McGregor. The attack of McGregor's training partner saw him fined half-a-million dollars by the Nevada State Commission and barred from competition for the next 9 months. As ESPN is reporting, the ban can be reduced to a 6-month bid if Khabib complies with a UFC-appointed anti-bullying program.
"Of course Tony deserves it," White told MMAJunkied. "He's the No. 1 contender. He's the guy. That's the fight," - all but confirming Tony Ferguson as the next guy in line, be it in 6 months or 9 months down the road. Ferguson last fought on the same UFC 229 fight card that ended in controversy, a performance which earned him "Fight of the Night" honors.
