This weekend in Abu Dhabi, lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier will unify their belts in the main event of UFC 242. But while two of the best in the world battle it out for lightweight supremacy, one man will be conspicuously absent: former interim champion and top contender Tony Ferguson.
Through poor timing and sheer happenstance, Ferguson - who has won 12 fights in a row in the division - was once again denied his shot at the title when Poirier defeated featherweight champion Max Holloway to claim the interim title.