Colby Covington will have his work cut out for him at UFC 296 in Las Vegas this weekend (Sat., Dec. 16, 2023).
“Chaos” returns to the fray for his third shot at undisputed Welterweight gold when he challenges the reigning champion, Leon Edwards, in what will be his first appearance since March 2022. Meanwhile, Edwards won the title and defended it in back-to-back bouts with Covington’s old rival, Kamaru Usman.
In his last time out, Covington picked up a unanimous decision nod over Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272 before the pair were embroiled in a legal battle after Masvidal assaulted Covington outside of a Miami Steakhouse. Masvidal went on to fight once more, where he lost another unanimous decision to Gilbert Burns and retired. When assessing Covington’s recent wins, Edwards isn’t impressed.
“Everyone talks about his cardio and that’s his weapon,” Edwards said on The MMA Hour. “Nobody says nothing about his skill set. I don’t think he’s talented, he’s more of a hard worker. He’s more cardio than skills. They’re judging the cardio off beating Robbie Lawler five years ago, six years ago. He’s in for a totally different shock.
“That was a Robbie Lawler that was already washed, over the hill,” he continued. “That wasn’t the same Robbie Lawler that beat Rory MacDonald back in the day or that kind of guy. All his wins he gets confidence off is all older, washed guys. He’s in for a rude awakening come Saturday night.”
Covington is 2-2 (17-3 overall) in his last four outings with the two losses coming in his previous undisputed title bids opposite Usman. Of “Chaos’” 12 UFC wins, only Rafael dos Anjos, Bryan Barberena, and Max Griffin are still competing in the promotion.
“I am no Masvidal,” Edwards said. “Everyone knows that. Masvidal was a one-foot-out-the-door fighter. He’s about to retire, he fought Colby to get a little payday to retire with. I am no Masvidal. If that’s what he’s judging it off, he’s got a rude awakening.”
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 296 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPN2 at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).
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