Issue 177

April 2019

Kevin Ferguson Jr on the legacy of his late father and making it on his own terms

You came into the MMA game with a lot of attention and a big spotlight on you. To top it off, you made your pro debut in one of the largest promotions on the planet in Bellator. What has it been like being with Bellator from the beginning?

I love Bellator. They are a great promotion and a great organization. They took care of my dad. They were good to him. It was only right that I signed with them. I was going to sign with them, regardless, even if it was after four or five amateur fights. I guess they just saw the talent in me and knew if I got the training I needed I could be something. I work hard. I put my all into this sport. It was a great move for me to sign with them. There is no pressure at all. This is something I love to do. Eventually this was going to happen, it’s just sooner rather than later. 

I spoke to your dad, Kimbo, prior to the Dada 5000 fight. He spoke so highly and cared so much for his kids. Can you share with us what Kimbo, what Kev, what Ferg was like as a father? 

He was a great father. He wasn’t afraid to show tough love. That is part of the reason why I am the guy I am today, that tough love. He had money. He had fame but he wanted me, specifically, to work for everything I got. Nothing came easy. Just like my first fight, I didn’t call my managers, I couldn’t call him. It seemed like I couldn’t call any of these guys before that first fight. I had to handle it myself. I worked a 9-5 job. I paid for my gear. I paid for my training and then I fought. He was strict when he had to be and he was nice when he had to be. There was definitely tough love. That is hard for a lot of fathers to do, to show that tough love to their kids. He didn’t just give me anything. If I asked for money I had to wash the car for the money. I had to clean the pool for money. I was never just ‘Here you go.’ Life is not like that and I had to work for everything.

That says a lot about you that you had to get into the game on your own and not be able to use his immense presence. What made you choose to go the route of blazing your own trail in that regard?

It all comes back to him showing me that tough love. It came back to him making me feel like nothing was easy, that nothing was going to be handed to me. I could have asked. He could have gave me everything and made phone calls and all that. We could have took that route. I feel like it wouldn’t have shown how badly I wanted it. I went after it on my own. I left Florida. I sold everything I owned. I started a whole new life just to do what I love to do, to fight in MMA. That showed the guys I was serious about it, that I took it seriously.

What was the toughest moment of that transition? Was there a moment where you wished dad would have made a call or two?

I don’t fold under pressure. I’m not one to get scared when things get tough. I just figure it out. I just handle it. My identity was stolen for a year. I couldn’t work. I didn’t have insurance. I didn’t have anything. I had to live on my own and figure it out and even then I still didn’t call these guys. I still didn’t call Mike. I still didn’t call my dad. I called them after the fact. I called them after I had my first fight. Then I talked to those guys and told them everything I had been through in that past year. I was only 22 at the time. I don’t fold under pressure. I know nothing comes easy, you just have to handle it. You have to stay patient and stay dedicated to it. 

You said you fight harder now with your dad being gone, that he is such an inspiration. Even though he is gone physically, how is he still with you? 

Yeah, man. He is gone but his legacy is still alive and it lives through me. All of his old fans are my fans and the new generation are my fans. I have a lot of support from everyone in the MMA world. It’s not even about the money. It’s about continuing the legacy. The fact that I am doing something I love to do makes it ten times easier. This is my passion. I have been wanting to do this since I was a kid. When most kids are acting up, parents will sit them down and put cartoons on. When I was a kid and I was acting up, my dad used to sit me down and put on Muhammad Ali Mike Tyson and Roy Jones, Jr. fights. I was just amazed by it. Then the fact that my dad was doing it made it even better. At this point, I am just doing what I love to do and continuing the legacy. It’s only right that I put my all into it.