Iaquinta rips UFC, Ferguson in latest tirade; 'El Cucuy' responds

Warning: Story contains coarse language

A weekend at the UFC's athlete retreat did nothing to appease "Raging" Al Iaquinta.

The lightweight contender went to the event in Las Vegas hoping he'd return to New York with the renegotiated contract he's been campaigning for over the past several months, but left just as disgruntled as when he arrived, according to his expletive-laced account of the proceedings in a Monday appearance on "The MMA Hour."

The 30-year-old once again sounded off on his purportedly shoddy pay, the promotion's apparent reluctance to get behind him, and its newly announced partnership with a hospital he claims to have single-handedly discovered while nursing a knee injury during his two-year layoff. In another one of his patented crass rants, Iaquinta claimed the company brass has yet to understand they have a bona fide gem in him, citing the wins he picked up over two perennial contenders in a quick turnaround in early 2015.

The Long Island native's grievances recently prompted him to ask for his release, and if his employers won't give him his due, he'll gladly dedicate himself to his newfound career in real estate.

"Everyone thinks this is a game," Iaquinta told Ariel Helwani. "No one gets it yet, Ariel, no one freaking gets it. I'm the guy, I'm the man. I put in the work. I'm the guy. I'm the fucking man. (UFC president) Dana White doesn't get it. (UFC Matchmaker) Sean Shelby's starting to get it, but they don't get it yet.

"I fought Joe Lauzon, I fought that guy, I knock him out. I was at the airport, I said I'll fucking fight (Jorge) Masvidal right now, and I took the fight, and I beat him and look where the fuck he's at right now, so I'm the fucking guy. People don't get it, nobody gets it. Everyone is a fucking pussy. I'm the fucking man. I am, nobody else. And if nobody wants to get it, I can only try so hard, and then I'm gonna go do something else, and that's what I'm doing."

Iaquinta's ire has also hit his fellow fighters, including top-ranked contender Tony Ferguson, who's been angling for an interim lightweight title bout opposite Nate Diaz. When asked about a potential date with "El Cucuy," Iaquinta claimed Ferguson wanted no part of him before launching into yet another anti-establishment tirade.

"I wanna fight that motherfucker. He doesn't wanna fight me, I'll guarantee you that. Look, you can say whatever you want about whoever, they all get knocked out, everybody. The only guy that didn't is Masvidal and look where he's at right now ... What more can I do? I knock out everyone they put me in front of. I treat them the way they should be treated: I put them out. That's it. And you're gonna pay me fuckin' bullshit? Fuck you."

The lightweight capped his manifesto with a parting shot at Ferguson.

"Tony Ferguson, you're a little bitch. I'll knock you out so fast, you fucking pussy."

Ferguson initially brushed off the callout when speaking to Helwani moments later, but took to Twitter to warn Iaquinta he was capable of expediting his exit from the UFC in brutal fashion: