Colby Covington: ‘You may never see me fight again’
At UFC 235, Tyron Woodley will look to defend his welterweight title against Kamaru Usman, not Colby Covington. To many, that was surprising given the fact that Covington was the interim champion and had a general hatred towards Woodley.
However, Covington would refuse to fight anyone else or fight for another interim title when Woodley was out injured. That, in turn, made the UFC mad at him and ultimately what led to him being passed over by Usman. Now, Covington has spoken frequently about how the UFC has done him dirty and even going as far as asking for his release. Well, if the UFC doesn’t give him his said release, he now has stated he may never fight again.
“I’m just moving on with my life. I’m not going to be the nice guy anymore. I’m not going to be the guy that tells lies about the UFC and tries to cover for the UFC like they’re so great and everything’s fine and dandy,” Covington told the TSN MMA Show.
“I’ve done so many favors for the UFC, flown all over the world, fought for little money against top contenders, fought for entry-level money. I’ve never complained, always been a company man, never failed a steroid test. Never done anything wrong, literally never.”
Another reason why Covington is mad is the fact that he doesn’t understand why he was passed over. He beat everyone that Usman beat — and did it before Usman — plus he was the former interim champion. As well, Covington believes he is a bigger draw and a money fight for Woodley.
“I’m the biggest draw this in this division right now. I’m not fighting for anything less than I deserve and I don’t care what they say. I’ll stand up for what’s right and if that means never fighting again then that means never fighting again,” said Covington.
“I’ve already built a great life for myself. I came from the projects. I came from trailer parks, growing up with one parent, just my mom, having to work four jobs. I don’t need anything anymore. I’ve already made enough money where I’m healthy and I have investments and I have enough going on in my life that I don’t need to fight ever again. You may never see me fight again. That’s a possibility right now.”
In the end, Covington just wants to get what he deserves and that is a title shot against Woodley. He was promised that and knows the UFC owes it to him to give it to him.
“I just want to fight, I want to do what I love, I love to fight, I love competition. I know I’m the best fighter in the world,” Covington said. “I train every day and no one’s ever taken one round off me. I’m in my prime right now. I want to put on competition. I want to put on entertainment. I want to go please all the fans.
“Obviously, the number one thing I want to do is fight right now, but I’m not fighting for anything less than I deserve. I’m standing up for what’s right and a lot of these fighters tuck their tail between their legs and they’re scared to stand up for themselves. They don’t want to fight against the UFC because they’re afraid to lose their job. I’m not afraid to lose my job. I dare the UFC to give me my release, cut me… I can make money anywhere else, I can go to another organization and make four times the money so I don’t need the UFC anymore.”
