TONY FERGUSON looked unrecognisable the moment Michael Chandler front kicked him to the face.

The former interim lightweight champion was knocked out cold by a picture-perfect front kick last weekend on a stacked UFC 274 in Phoenix, Arizona.




Chandler caught El Cucuy perfectly with the ball of his rear foot in the second round, separating him from consciousness before he even hit the canvas.

The knockout quickly went viral, but a still photo of the incredible moment has blown fans away.

A cageside photographer captured the moment the ball of Chandler's right foot connected with Ferguson's chin and made his entire head snap back.

The force of the kick left Ferguson unrecognisable as every ounce of skin on his face rippled simultaneously.

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MMA fans were quick to comment on the insane snap, with one saying: "Got turned into a Bored Ape NFT like Frankie [Edgar] did."

Another said: "Please say this is altered."

And another said: "This doesn’t even look real, but then you remember the Yoel Romero/Paulo Costa head kick photo lol."

One remarked: "Damn, that kick aged him 60 years."

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Another chimed in: "These cameras are savage."

Defeat to Chandler was Ferguson's fourth in a row, but UFC president Dana White isn't ready to urge the fan favourite to call it a day.

In the post-fight press conference, he said of Ferguson: "He looked damn good in that first round.

"But that was a vicious knockout. but I think what needs to happen now is Tony needs to take some time off after that knockout."

The MMA mogul added: "I don't know what's next for him

"But it's not like, 'Oh my God, Tony got dominated and looks like he doesn't belong here.'

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"Tony looked damn good right up until he got caught.

"And you know in this game that anybody can get caught with anything."

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