Colby Covington

Last updated

Colby Covington
ColbyCovingtonFortJackson2022(cropped).jpg
Covington in 2022
BornColby Ray Covington
(1988-02-22) February 22, 1988 (age 36)
Clovis, California, U.S.
NicknameChaos
Height5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Division Welterweight
Reach72 in (183 cm) [1]
Style Wrestling
Stance Southpaw
Fighting out of Miami, Florida, U.S.
Team
RankBlack belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Daniel Valverde [3]
Wrestling NCAA Division I All-American
Years active2007–2011 (Collegiate wrestling)
2012–present (MMA)
Mixed martial arts record
Total22
Wins17
By knockout4
By submission4
By decision9
Losses5
By knockout2
By submission1
By decision2
Other information
University Oregon State University
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Medal record
Representing the Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Submission grappling
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2013 London77 kg (No-Gi)
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing Iowa Central Community College
NJCAA Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2007 Rochester165 lb
Representing the Oregon State Beavers
Pac-10 Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2010 Davis174 lb
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2011 Corvallis174 lb

Colby Ray Covington [4] (born February 22, 1988) [5] is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former Interim UFC Welterweight Champion. [6] As of December 17, 2024, he is #9 in the UFC welterweight rankings. [7]

Contents

Early life

Covington was born in Clovis, California on February 22, 1988. The family moved from California to Oregon when he was eight years old. [8] His father was a wrestler during his time at the Oregon Institute of Technology and Southern Oregon University. [9]

Wrestling career

As a wrestler at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon, Covington lettered all four years and won the 171 lb state championship as a senior in 2006. He committed to Arizona State University but his test scores were not up to par, so he went to Iowa Central Community College, where he won the 2007 165 lb national junior college wrestling title as a true freshman with a 34–0 record. [10] His roommate at the time was future UFC champion Jon Jones. [11]

Following his championship season at Iowa Central, Covington transferred to the wrestling program at the University of Iowa. On August 10, 2007, he was arrested for eluding police and driving under the influence, having registered a BAC of 0.255, over three times the legal limit of 0.08. [12] He later said, "That was a real all-time low in my life, something I really wish I could take back." Due to his arrest, Covington was suspended from the Hawkeyes for a year and saw limited time the next season. [10] He looked for a fresh start, and former Hawkeyes coach Jim Zalesky convinced Covington to transfer to Oregon State University. [10] [8]

During his time at OSU, Covington qualified for the NCAA tournament as a junior and as a senior, placing fifth as a senior and earning All-American honors. [13] He also was a two-time Pac-10 Conference champion at 174-pounds. He was cited for fourth-degree assault stemming from an incident on May 23, 2010, in which he was accused of punching two men after a verbal altercation. [12] The Benton County District Attorney's Office did not pursue charges against Covington over the incident. [14]

Covington graduated with a bachelor's degree in sociology in 2011. [15] After graduation, he continued to compete in wrestling and grappling, winning a gold medal at the 2013 FILA Grappling no-gi world championships. [16]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

After completing his collegiate wrestling career in 2011, Covington was one of a number of athletes recruited by Dan Lambert to American Top Team to improve the gym's wrestling talent. [17] Covington soon began his professional career and compiled a record of 5–0 before signing with the UFC in the summer of 2014. [18]

Ultimate Fighting Championship (2014–present)

Covington made his promotional debut against Anying Wang on August 23, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 48. [18] He won the fight by TKO via punches in the closing seconds of the first round. [19]

Covington fought Wagner Silva on November 8, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 56. [20] He won the fight via submission in the third round. [21]

Covington next faced Mike Pyle on May 23, 2015, at UFC 187, replacing an injured Sean Spencer. [22] He won the fight via unanimous decision. [23]

Covington faced Warlley Alves on December 12, 2015, at UFC 194. [24] He lost the fight via submission in the first round. [25] [26]

Covington was expected to compete against Alex Garcia on June 18, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 89. [27] However, Garcia was pulled from the fight on June 10 for undisclosed reasons and replaced by promotional newcomer Jonathan Meunier. [28] Covington won the fight via submission in the third round. [29]

Covington next faced promotional newcomer Max Griffin on August 20, 2016, at UFC 202. [30] He won the fight via TKO in the third round. [31]

Covington's next bout was against Bryan Barberena on December 17, 2016, at UFC on Fox 22. [32] He won the fight via unanimous decision. [33]

Covington faced Dong Hyun Kim on June 17, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 111. [34] He won the fight via unanimous decision. [35]

As the final fight of his prevailing contract, Covington fought Demian Maia on October 28, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 119. [36] [37] He won the fight via unanimous decision. [38]

Interim UFC Welterweight Champion

Covington with his Interim UFC Welterweight belt in 2019 ColbyCovingtonMarineCorpsMartialArtsProgram2019.jpg
Covington with his Interim UFC Welterweight belt in 2019

Covington fought Rafael dos Anjos on June 9, 2018, at UFC 225 for the Interim UFC Welterweight Championship. [39] He won the fight via unanimous decision. [40]

Covington was briefly linked to a title unification bout with the then champion Tyron Woodley on September 8, 2018, at UFC 228. [41] However, Covington was unable to compete on that date due to recent nasal surgery. As a result, UFC officials turned their attention to arranging a bout between Woodley and Darren Till to fill the headlining spot. In turn, promotional officials indicated on July 24 that Covington would be stripped of the Interim UFC Welterweight Championship, once the bout between Woodley and Till took place. [42] [43]

Covington returned to face Robbie Lawler in the main event of UFC on ESPN 5 on August 3, 2019. [44] He won the fight via a lopsided unanimous decision, setting a record for the most strikes thrown in a UFC bout, with 541 strikes. [45] [46]

Covington faced Kamaru Usman for the UFC Welterweight Championship on December 14, 2019, at UFC 245. [47] Covington broke his jaw in the third round, and would be finished by technical knockout in the fifth round. [48] [49] This fight earned him his first post–fight bonus in the UFC for Fight of the Night . [50] Going into the final round, one judge had Covington winning 39–37, another had it tied at 38–38, and the other had it 39–37 in favor of Usman. [51]

After a long-lasting, public feud and trash talking between Covington and other American Top Team members – most notably Dustin Poirier, Jorge Masvidal and Joanna Jędrzejczyk – Covington eventually parted ways with his first mixed martial arts gym in May 2020. [2]

Covington headlined UFC Fight Night 178 against his long-time rival Tyron Woodley on September 19, 2020. [52] [53] After dominating his opponent for four rounds, the bout was called as a technical knockout when Woodley suffered a rib injury. [54] [55]

Covington rematched Kamaru Usman for the UFC Welterweight Championship on November 6, 2021, at UFC 268. [56] Despite a close bout, Covington lost via unanimous decision. [57]

Post-championship

Covington faced Jorge Masvidal on March 5, 2022, at UFC 272. [58] He won the fight via unanimous decision in dominant fashion. [59] This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award. [60]

After sitting out for nearly two years, Covington returned to face Leon Edwards for the UFC Welterweight Championship on December 16, 2023 in the main event at UFC 296. [61] Covington broke his foot in the first minute of the bout, and eventually lost via unanimous decision. [62]

Covington stepped in as a replacement for Ian Machado Garry, to face Joaquin Buckley on December 14, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 63. [63] Covington lost the fight by technical knockout as a result of a doctor stoppage due to a cut above his eye in the third round. [64]

Fighting style

As an NCAA Division I All-American [13] and a two-time Pac-10 champion as a collegiate wrestler, Covington heavily utilizes wrestling and grappling in mixed martial arts. He aims to take his opponents down and control them on the ground, where he looks for ground-and-pound. If unsuccessful on his initial take down attempt, he will chain it into further take down attempts, forcing his opponent to defend and tiring them out in the process. Covington is renowned for his cardio and is capable of maintaining an intense pace over five rounds. [65]

While standing, Covington primarily fights out of a southpaw stance, and his striking arsenal features a variety of punches and kicks. He often purposely overextends on his punches to transition from striking to a takedown attempt. His stand-up game focuses on volume and forward pressure. [65] In his win over Robbie Lawler in 2019, Covington threw 541 strikes, which was a UFC record until surpassed by Max Holloway's 746 attempted strikes in his fight against Calvin Kattar in 2021. [66]

Brazilian jiu-jitsu lineage

Kano Jigoro → Tomita Tsunejiro → Mitsuyo Maeda → Carlos Gracie → Reyson Gracie → Osvaldo Alves → Daniel Valverde → Colby Covington [67] [68] [69]

Professional wrestling appearances

In August 2017, Covington began making appearances in Impact Wrestling (known at the time as Global Force Wrestling), representing American Top Team, where he got involved in the storyline with Lashley. [70] Throughout the month, Lashley was conflicted on whether he should combine his two careers together, or quit wrestling and focus on his MMA career; he would eventually side with ATT. [71] [72] [73] On August 17, at Destination X, some members of ATT were ringside to support Lashley for his match against Matt Sydal. Post-match, Covington attacked referee Brian Hebner with a rear-naked choke, which Lashley had to call off, before he and ATT left the arena. [74] [75] On the August 24 episode of Impact! (taped August 17), they were again at ringside to support Lashley in a twenty-man gauntlet match for the GFW Impact World Heavyweight Championship, which was eventually won by Eli Drake. [76] On 5 November, at Bound for Glory, Covington appeared as a cornerman, as Lashley and King Mo defeated Moose and Stephan Bonnar in a six sides of steel match. [77] In the build-up to the event, he hired Stevie Richards to be his strength and conditioning coach. [78] The event marked Covington's final appearance with the stable.

In February 2018 and in the midst of his feud with Tyron Woodley, Covington appeared at a WrestlePro event, in conjunction with Impact. His only professional wrestling match to date saw him squash an unidentified wrestler portraying a parody of Woodley, under the ring name TyQuill Woodley. [79]

Public image

Political views

Covington with United States Army soldiers in 2022 ColbyCovingtonUSArmy2022.jpg
Covington with United States Army soldiers in 2022

Covington is an outspoken supporter of the Republican Party and President-elect Donald Trump. After winning the Interim UFC Welterweight Championship, he stated he wanted to visit Trump at the White House to present him with the title, [80] which he did on August 2, 2018. [81] Trump phoned to congratulate Covington during his post-fight interview following his win over Tyron Woodley. [82] Covington dedicated his win over Woodley to first responders and the military and criticized Black Lives Matter and LeBron James. [83] [84] Woodley had spoken about his support for the Black Lives Matter movement leading up to the fight. [85]

Controversies

He has described himself as the "super villain" of the UFC and will often try to upset people with brazen trash talking. Following his 2017 bout with Demian Maia at São Paulo, Brazil, he called the country a "dump" and referred to the Brazilian crowd as "filthy animals" in the post-fight interview. [86] In an interview with Candace Owens, Covington said that his "act" was a response to the UFC threatening to cut him before the Maia fight and stated the "filthy animals" speech "saved his career." [87] Covington further embraced his villain status before his 2019 main event encounter with Robbie Lawler at UFC on ESPN 5. He used the WWE entrance theme of professional wrestler Kurt Angle—which is regularly punctuated with crowd chants of "You suck!"—as his entrance music; Angle had given Covington permission to use the theme. With two of Trump's sons, Donald Jr. and Eric cage-side for the fight, [88] the crowd performed the "You suck!" chants during Covington's entrance. [89]

After his win over Lawler, Covington stated; "Let's talk about the lesson we learned tonight that Robbie should have learned from his good buddy Matt Hughes. You stay off the tracks when the train is coming through, junior, doesn't matter if it's the Trump train or the Colby train, get out the way!" during his post-fight interview. This was in reference to a near-fatal accident Hughes suffered in 2017, where he was permanently damaged when his truck was struck by a train at a rail crossing. [90] [91] Despite being criticized by the media, Covington refused to apologize, explaining that "the guy's done some pretty crappy stuff, he's got lawsuits against his family, against his brother, I just said the truth, I'm honest. I'm a little bit brutally honest sometimes and people can't handle it." [92]

Covington continued his trash-talking in the lead up to the Kamaru Usman fight at UFC 245. During a press conference, he said that Usman gave Glenn Robinson, Usman's long-time coach who died in 2018, "a heart attack from all those years you were ducking me," and that Robinson would be "watching from hell on Dec. 14." [93]

In March 2021, Covington created controversy by insinuating that he had a sexual relationship with fellow UFC fighter Polyana Viana and that this was part of the reason why he turned down a fight with Leon Edwards at UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad. [94] Viana herself had earlier claimed that she and Colby were "just friends" and that she already had a boyfriend when addressing rumors that the two of them were in a relationship. [95] After Covington's comments, Viana gave the following statement through her social media: "I have never given room for any kind of comment or judgment about my personal life, but it is not for me to judge the person's attitude. I feel sorry for those who act so low to try to promote themselves. It is revolting." [96]

In the pre-fight press conference for UFC 296, Covington stated in a heated back-and-forth with Leon Edwards: "I'm gonna take you to the seventh layer of hell ... We'll say 'what's up' to your dad while we're there." [97] Edwards' father was murdered when he was 13. [98] He responded by throwing a bottle at Covington. Covington drew further backlash when he stated that he did not feel apologetic about his remarks towards Edwards' late father. [99] Dana White said during the post-fight press conference: "It bothered everybody I think ... We're in the fight game, mean things are said, one of the things that I really don't like is family ... It's just such a nasty thing to do." [100] Covington's performance at UFC 296 also garnered additional criticism, with Dana White commenting that he looked "old and slow." [100]

Covington came under fire in September 2024 for putting rapper Lil Pump in a rear-naked chokehold for a live-streamed video, but not letting go for over 10 seconds after the rapper tapped out. [101] Lil Pump eventually passed out and went limp, only after which did Covington let go. [102]

Attack by Jorge Masvidal

On March 22, 2022, it was reported that Covington was assaulted outside of a Miami Beach Papi Steak restaurant by UFC rival Jorge Masvidal, whom Covington had defeated in a lopsided decision previously at UFC 272 a few weeks prior. Covington allegedly suffered a broken tooth from two punches to the face. Masvidal was arrested and charged with aggravated battery, and criminal mischief. [103] [104] [105] On November 6, 2023, Masvidal pleaded no contest to misdemeanor battery in a plea deal that saw felony charges for aggravated battery and criminal mischief against him dropped. [106]

Championships and accomplishments

Collegiate / folkstyle wrestling

Grappling

Covington with his Interim UFC Welterweight belt in 2019 ColbyCovingtonMarineCorpsMartialArtsInstructors2019.jpg
Covington with his Interim UFC Welterweight belt in 2019

Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
22 matches17 wins5 losses
By knockout42
By submission41
By decision92
Res.RecordOpponentMethodEventDateRoundTimeLocationNotes
Loss17–5 Joaquin Buckley TKO (doctor stoppage) UFC on ESPN: Covington vs. Buckley December 14, 202434:42 Tampa, Florida, United States
Loss17–4 Leon Edwards Decision (unanimous) UFC 296 December 16, 202355:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United StatesFor the UFC Welterweight Championship.
Win17–3 Jorge Masvidal Decision (unanimous) UFC 272 March 5, 202255:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United StatesFight of the Night.
Loss16–3 Kamaru Usman Decision (unanimous) UFC 268 November 6, 202155:00 New York City, New York, United StatesFor the UFC Welterweight Championship.
Win16–2 Tyron Woodley TKO (rib injury) UFC Fight Night: Covington vs. Woodley September 19, 202051:19 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss15–2 Kamaru Usman TKO (punches) UFC 245 December 14, 201954:10 Las Vegas, Nevada, United StatesFor the UFC Welterweight Championship. Fight of the Night.
Win15–1 Robbie Lawler Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Covington vs. Lawler August 3, 201955:00 Newark, New Jersey, United States
Win14–1 Rafael dos Anjos Decision (unanimous) UFC 225 June 9, 201855:00 Chicago, Illinois, United StatesWon the interim UFC Welterweight Championship. Later stripped of the title due to injury.
Win13–1 Demian Maia Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Machida October 28, 201735:00 São Paulo, Brazil
Win12–1 Kim Dong-hyun Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Correia June 17, 201735:00 Kallang, Singapore
Win11–1 Bryan Barberena Decision (unanimous) UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson December 17, 201635:00 Sacramento, California, United States
Win10–1 Max Griffin TKO (punches) UFC 202 August 20, 201632:18 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win9–1 Jonathan Meunier Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Thompson June 18, 201630:54 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Loss8–1 Warlley Alves Submission (guillotine choke) UFC 194 December 12, 201511:26 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win8–0 Mike Pyle Decision (unanimous) UFC 187 May 23, 201535:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win7–0Wagner SilvaSubmission (rear-naked choke) UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Saint Preux November 8, 201433:26 Uberlândia, Brazil
Win6–0Wang AnyingTKO (submission to punches) UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Le August 23, 201414:50 Macau, SAR, China
Win5–0Jay EllisSubmission (arm-triangle choke)Absolute FC 21May 16, 201412:49 Hollywood, Florida, United States
Win4–0Jose CaceresDecision (unanimous)CFA 12October 12, 201335:00 Coral Gables, Florida, United States
Win3–0 Jason Jackson Decision (unanimous)Fight Time 10June 22, 201235:00 Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States
Win2–0David HayesSubmission (arm-triangle choke)Fight Time 9April 27, 201221:42 Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States
Win1–0Chris EnsleyTKO (submission to knee injury)Midtown Throwdown 3February 11, 201211:21 Eugene, Oregon, United StatesWelterweight debut.

[117]

Pay-per-view bouts

No.EventFightDateVenueCityPPV Buys
1. UFC 245 Usman vs. CovingtonDecember 14, 2019 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, Nevada, United States600,000 [118]
2. UFC 268 Usman vs. Covington 2November 6, 2021 Madison Square Garden New York City, New York, United States700,000 [119]
3. UFC 272 Covington vs. MasvidalMarch 5, 2022 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, Nevada, United States900,000 [120]
4. UFC 296 Edwards vs. CovingtonDecember 16, 2023 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, Nevada, United StatesNot Disclosed [121]

NCAA record

NCAA Championships Matches
Res.RecordOpponentScoreDateEvent
2011 NCAA Championships 5th at 174 lbs [122]
Win7–4Christopher Henrich3–2March 17–19, 20112011 NCAA Division I National Championships
Loss6–4Mack Lewnes5–12
Win6–3Mike Letts6–1
Win5–3Ryan Patrovich3–2
Loss4–3Chris Henrich5–7
Win4–2Jacob Swartz8–2
Win3–2Mike DessinoMD 18–6
2010 NCAA Championships DNP at 174 lbs [123]
Loss2–2Ben BennetFallMarch 18–20, 20102010 NCAA Division I National Championships
Loss2–1Mack LewnesOT 2–4
Win2–0Luke ManuelOT 3–1
Win1–0Jim RednickMD 10–1

See also

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References

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  2. 1 2 3 Damon Martin (May 27, 2020). "Colby Covington confirms split from American Top Team after being removed from team website".
  3. ↑ Phillips, Sabrina (April 29, 2023). "Colby Covington Promoted To BJJ Black Belt". JitsMagazine. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Family tree of Colby Covington". Geneanet. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
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  7. ↑ "Rankings | UFC". www.ufc.com. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
  8. 1 2 Popkin, Brad (June 15, 2015). "Covington Wants A Piece Of 'Stun Gun' Kim". MMAmania.com. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Colby Covington - Wrestling". Oregon State University Athletics. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  10. 1 2 3 "NCAA wrestling championships: Oregon State's Colby Covington takes long road to Omaha". oregonlive.com. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  11. ↑ Rondina, Steven. "Colby Covington: Jon Jones 'Threw People Through Windows' in College". Bleacher Report. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  12. 1 2 "Pac-10 wrestling champ Colby Covington cited for fourth-degree assault". oregonlive.com. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  13. 1 2 "2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships" (PDF). NCAA.com. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
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Achievements
Preceded by 3rd UFC Interim Welterweight Champion
June 9, 2018 – September 8, 2018
Stripped		Vacant

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