Tyron Woodley vs. Colby Covington will now headline a UFC event on September
Tyron Woodley vs. Colby Covington will now headline a UFC event on September
An anticipated showdown between former teammates, Colby Covington and Tyron Woodley was in the works for the UFC event on Aug. 22, according to Covington, but the fight will no longer happen. But not to worry according to Tyron Woodley they will now fight in September. According to MMA reporter Ariel Helwani “They have both verbally agreed to fight in September. Currently, it’s the main event on Sept. 19.”
It appeared the matchup would happen in 2018 after Covington captured the interim welterweight title. While Woodley was still the reigning 170-pound champion. Unfortunately, Covington underwent sinus surgery after a big win over ex-lightweight champ Rafael dos Anjos, and he was unable to make a swift turn around to fight again in September.
According to Ariel Helwani on twitter UFC 253 PPV will be moved which was originally for Sept. 19.
Tyron Woodley x Colby Covington is closer to becoming a reality than ever before. They have both verbally agreed to fight in September. Currently, it’s the main event on Sept. 19. But that’s the UFC 253 date, no? Well that might move to Abu Dhabi on 9/26. Fluid right now.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) August 10, 2020
Woodley went onto beat Darren Till, and then he suffered a thumb injury that kept him from competing again for the rest of the year.
Eventually, Woodley lost his title to Kamaru Usman in 2019, and Covington finally made his return to action later that year when he picked up a win over former champion Robbie Lawler earning a impressive decision that night.
It has appeared Covington and Woodley have been on a collision course, but the fight has never been signed. In March, Covington volunteered to step in when Leon Edwards was ruled out of UFC London. When the UFC tried to move the card to the U.S. Due to the coronavirus pandemic. Then Woodley invited Covington to fight one month later at UFC 249 and promised to write him off for good without an agreement.
Woodley announced on his Instagram on Monday that he is in training camp for a fight. Against Covington on September 19. The UFC has not confirmed the bout yet, but this fight between the two long-time rivals has been rumored for a few months now. The UFC was just looking for the right date for these two to finally settle their score, and it’s September 19.
“Champ Camp in Session! September 19th CockRoach Covington Gets Squashed!”
Woodley (19-5-1) is the former UFC welterweight champion. After defeating Darren Till by submission in 2018, Woodley dropped back-to-back losses to Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns. Although, he is still the No. 5 ranked welterweight in the UFC, and win here over Covington would fire Woodley back towards title contention. A loss, however, and he could be staring at the anxious three-fight losing streak.
Covington (15-2) was a former interim UFC welterweight champion. The current No. 2 ranked welterweight is coming off of a TKO loss to Usman in a championship fight last year, but he was highly competitive with Usman and proved he’s one of the best welterweight’s by nearly going the distance and potentially earning a decision from the champion. A win here over Woodley and Covington could very well be next in line to fight Usman once again.
