INGLEWOOD, Calif. – UFC lightweight Tony Ferguson watched with gritted teeth as Khabib Nurmagomedov took a fight with Darrell Horcher at April’s UFC on FOX 19.

Ferguson (20-3 MMA, 10-1 UFC) had to withdraw from the bout with an injury that sent blood into his lungs – one doctor even said his lung collapsed. For his own safety, he had to sit and do nothing.

That’s why it was torture to watch Nurmagomedov (23-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), his rival, take the fight, which he wound up winning easily.

“I was pretty upset that he took the fight against a project manager, when he wouldn’t wait a couple weeks to get an actual legitimate fight,” Ferguson said backstage at this past Saturday’s UFC 199 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. “A fight that the fight fans and everybody else, the boss, everybody wanted this fight. I wanted this fight.”

In case you were wondering, Ferguson is referring to Horcher (12-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who indeed works as a project manager for a sheet metal company and made his UFC debut at UFC on FOX 19.

Nothing personal, of course. But to Ferguson, it was a huge opportunity lost – and lost multiple times, as he’d previously been booked against Nurmagomedov. He thought the Dagestani fighter should wait.

“We signed on the dotted line a couple of times, and unfortunately, it just didn’t happen,” he said. “Timelines are different. His timeline is a little different than mine. I’m not saying he doesn’t want to fight. But I’m a very scary opponent for this division.”

Ferguson is now moving on, facing Michael Chiesa, who called him out and got the booking for UFC Fight Night 91 on July 13 at Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, S.D. The event’s main card airs live on FOX Sports 1.

Nurmagomedov, meanwhile, remains unbooked after his bout with Horcher.

It’s more than likely they’ll eventually meet, though it’s anyone’s guess who will first reach the ultimate goal of becoming champ, if either of them.

Ferguson, of course, predicts he’ll be first.

For more on UFC Fight Night 91, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.