Update: After this article was published, we were able to get Ferguson on the phone. In addition to confirming the accuracy of the story, here’s what he had to say:
“When we got outside, he put his stuff in the trunk and then told me to swing,” Ferguson says. “I was like, ‘I know what that’s about; he’s going to press charges.’ So, I picked my shit back up and started to go back inside. He kept talking, calling me a pussy, and eventually pushed me.” At that point, the fight took place.
Ferguson also confirmed that the police did arrive, but he says no action was taken due what he says is the mutual combat law (whether that actually holds up is another story). As of this writing, the IFBB Pro League has not reached out to Ferguson.
“They don’t give a fuck about that shit. Tyler Manion told me, ‘good takedown.’ This isn’t a personality contest,” Ferguson says.
As of now, though, Ferguson is suspended from Unique Fitness. “The owner of the gym needs to talk to a couple of parents who had their kid in daycare there, to make sure they don’t have an issue with me,” he says. “Ferguson does, however, have four gym memberships, so while this is an inconvenience, as Unique Fitness is the closest gym to him, it’s not a hindrance on his training in any way.
Original Story: If IFBB Pro League Men’s Physique competitor Andre Ferguson comes in fifth again at the 2019 Olympia, he could always pursue a career in mixed martial arts instead.
Earlier this week, the two-time Arnold Classic Men’s Physique champ was involved in a parking lot brawl outside of his local gym after a fellow gym-goer challenged him to a fight, according to a video by Nick’s Strength and Power. While Ferguson dominated the guy, he wasn’t the aggressor, according to clips from his Instagram story that were captured by Desktop Bodybuilding.
To make a long story short, Ferguson claims that he politely confronted the man inside the gym about leaving four plates, or 180 pounds, on each side of the machine he was using. Apparently, the man responded angrily and asked Ferguson to take it outside. As it turns out, challenging the men’s physique athlete wasn’t in his best interest.
In less than a minute, Ferguson had ducked a wild hook, initiated a double-leg takedown, dumped his opponent, and then clinched the full mount (a position where one fighter is straddling the torso of another downed opponent with both legs) before the fight was broken up. While we don’t condone fighting your fellow gym members, we’ll admit that Ferguson has some skill (and, well, his opponent is seriously lacking some).
All we have is a video of the takedown and mount, which you can see at 1:22 in the video below.
As Ferguson began to turn his back, he quickly realized that the guy was coming back at him, so he squared up and continued walking back to create space. The aggressor stepped in with a heavily telegraphed right hook, so Ferguson ducked under and tied up his body. Then, he took full mount. This is an ideal position to be in because it leaves your opponent helpless with their head and upper limbs exposed. At this point, most fights would be over.
“I showed this kid mercy like three times,” Ferguson said in his Instagram story. “I even walked away from him.”
Unfortunately for the alleged aggressor, Ferguson’s takedown was pretty impressive. Check out the clip of two MMA pros below, and you’ll see that Ferguson executed a pretty flawless takedown in comparison. (Granted, his competition certainly wasn’t Ultimate Fighting Championship quality.)
