UFC fighter Colby Covington has blamed his recent loss to Leon Edwards on his support for former President Donald Trump.
“I thought I had the win. I thought I did enough, but the judges have never favored me. They hate me because I support Trump. Everybody hates Trump in this building. It is what it is. Life goes on,” Covington said at a press conference following his lost fight against Edwards last weekend.
Listen:
Colby Covington speaks on his loss against Leon Edwards:
“The judges have never favored me. They hate me because I support Trump”#UFC296 #UFCpic.twitter.com/SpBBNGJCe8
— FightCrack (@FightCrack) December 17, 2023
“All three judges in attendance scored the fight the same way — a 49-46 victory in favor of Edwards — along with all 23 media members who scored the fight at home via MMADecisions.com giving the bout to the champ,” according to Deadspin.
Appearing on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime” this week, Covington doubled down on his accusation.
“I think they stacked the deck against us because they don’t want we the people to have control of this country again,” he said. “And that is what Trump stands for. He stands for democracy. He stands for freedom.”
“So they are going to do everything they can to keep us down. If it is in any sort of judging position in a fight, or any sort of athletic event, they are going to stack the deck against us. It is a sad time in our country. But we need to rise up and we can’t let this keep us down,” he added.
“I want a rematch. I deserve it, you know. I think I broke my foot in the first 30 seconds in the fight kicking on his elbow so I want a rematch with this guy. I’m going to come back stronger. I’m just like the American people, you know, we never give up,” he continued.
Listen:
According to ESPN, Covington has always been a controversial figure.
“Over the past seven years, Covington has turned himself into one of the most polarizing figures in MMA, often crossing the lines of moral and ethical responsibility in doing so. He has been kicked out of a gym in South Florida and labeled by some as a racist because of his targeted choice of words toward fighters and countries,” a recent ESPN profile of him reads.
“He has threatened the life of a UFC broadcaster and developed such a personal rivalry with former friend and teammate Jorge Masvidal that after fighting each other inside the Octagon, Masvidal publicly assaulted him outside a restaurant in Miami and pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor battery charge,” it continues.
In the process, he’s acquired a slew of enemies, many of whom were quick to slam his comments about the judges hating him because of his pro-Trump views.
Look:
Pointless to complain now. Go back to the drawing board and start training for the next fight
— MMA Bonehead (@MMAbonehead) December 21, 2023
He lost me forever, this is laughable. His own corner was telling him to pick up up, that he was the challenger ‘cause he was going to lose.
— Cameron (@LystMeBaby) December 21, 2023
If you watched, you know he had lost four rounds in a row bc he was timid. Leon handled him for four rounds, easy. R5 Colby had a 10-9 round, and that’s all he had.
— Cole Michael (@_cole_michael) December 21, 2023
Anyone who’s believes Colby won either didn’t watch the fight or has no clue about MMA.
The fight wasn’t a great fight but Edward’s won that fight.
This is looking very salty and distasteful from Colby.
— Lance Phillips (@LancePhillips89) December 21, 2023
Colby Copium. pic.twitter.com/TpB3I9VwIJ
— Gabe NZ (@nz_gabe) December 21, 2023
One point of controversy that remains is whether his conservative beliefs are sincere or not.
In its profile of Covington, ESPN noted that he’d once claimed that “the UFC had informed him it was going to cut him from the roster … because he wasn’t exciting enough.”
It’s after this that he started saying and doing controversial things. And so, for this reason, some folks doubt the sincerity of his beliefs.
He’s basically playing a WWE style heel, which is why it’s funny so many diehard Trump fans love him for it. It’s like, “You do realize, the whole reason he’s doing this is to deliberately make people hate him, right?”
— John Hawkins (@johnhawkinsrwn) December 21, 2023
Among those who appear to endorse this theory is retired UFC middleweight Chael Sonnen.
“Everyone would like to be loved, but at some point, you observe that every story has a bad guy,” he told ESPN. “No one wants to be that guy. Every ‘bad guy’ this sport has seen gets put there, and it hurts their feelings.”
“And some will say, ‘Oh, how can I fix my image?’ while others will say, ‘Screw all of that. Let me give you what you really want, which is the other side of the story, the bad guy side.’ It’s entertainment, it’s a performance, and when it’s done well, it sells out arenas,” he added.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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