Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Colby Covington will apparently get a crack at welterweight champion Kamaru Usman next.
It looks like Colby Covington has jumped the queue at welterweight. The former (?) UFC interim champ headlined a UFC on ESPN show against former champ Robbie Lawler over the weekend, and picked up a dominant unanimous decision win. According to UFC president Dana White, who spoke to the media following the Contender Series last night, it was enough to propel “Chaos” to the front of the line ahead of guys like Jorge Masvidal and Leon Roberts:
“Yeah. That’s why I put Covington on ESPN against a guy like Lawler. You can say whatever you want about Covington, you don’t like him or whatever, but he put on a clinic against Lawler, who is a beast. Lawler’s been (in) all the big fights, former world champion, hits like a truck, and Colby completely shut him down. His cardio was impressive, and the way he beat Lawler was even more impressive.”
He followed up with more praise for Covington a little later:
“I thought Colby did a really good job of shutting Robbie down. Kicks, punches, takedowns, he mixed it up. And his cardio was unbelievable. Unbelievable.”
It is unclear when Usman will be returning to the cage at this point.
White also commented on the controversial statement by Covington following the fight that insulted UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes:
“I think it was very Colby. It was typical Colby Covington.”