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Asked to summarize his one-sided drubbing of Jorge Masvidal on Saturday, Colby Covington largely ignored the first question from his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan so he could publicly thank the first responders and military members who make this country great. Not even 30 seconds later, he had already pivoted toward a verbal accosting of Dustin Poirier and his family, in a mic-drop moment meant to stir up chatter for yet another pay-per-view grudge match against a former teammate.
As cringe and shameless as ever, the calculated Covington (17-3) showcased the full gamut of the “Chaos” experience during the main event of UFC 272 in Las Vegas, following a fight in which his grappling and weaponized cardio proved more than enough to conquer whatever emotionally fueled hopes Masvidal still had of reviving his brand at age 37.
Covington, a former interim titleholder at 170 pounds, was as efficient as he was dominant on this night, save for a fourth-round scare in which Masvidal dropped him to his knees with a right hand but lacked the remaining gas tank to capitalize. Yet the greatest skill shown by Covington in retaining his status on the fringe of pound-for-pound recognition was his presence of mind to understand the limitations of his immediate future.
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At 34, Covington currently stands among the likes of Max Holloway, Robert Whittaker, Justin Gaethje and Poirier as the best fighters in the promotion who are currently without a UFC title around their waist. But in Covington’s case, the chances of him getting a third shot at winning one simply isn’t likely as long as Kamaru Usman, who has twice defeated Covington in competitive title bouts, is still the defending welterweight champion.
For as good as Covington proved he still is by manhandling the 2019 fighter of the year, he didn’t stop Masvidal like Usman spectacularly did with one punch in their 2021 rematch. In fact, Covington would likely be destined to inherit a legacy as a great fighter who was stuck in the wrong era behind an even greater one in Usman, the undisputed P4P king who appears on his way to becoming an all-time great, if it wasn’t for his tasteless shtick.
Whether or not you believe Covington’s transition from softspoken teammate to MMA’s public enemy No. 1 actually saved him from being cut early in his UFC run, it’s the exact reason why he appears poised to maximize what’s left of his physical prime and financial future.
Covington’s crass nature typically knows no limits and his decision to link Poirier’s wife and their five-year-old daughter into his verbal attack proved no different. But the reality is it will probably work in luring Poirier into helping him create another big payday in a matchup where Covington would hold key size and style advantages over Poirier, who has recently been linked with rumors of a Nate Diaz clash, moving up from lightweight.
This might not be an exact facsimile of Floyd Mayweather creating his “Money” character to become the biggest PPV star in boxing history despite winning a string of one-sided fights with a largely defensive style, but it’s from the same playbook, for sure.
Covington, who entered as a firm betting favorite over Masvidal for reasons that became obvious in the opening round of their fight, spent much of fight week beginning to plant the seed for the Poirier fight in the same ways he was previously smart to do the same with Masvidal throughout Covington’s two-fight series with Usman.
Love him or hate him outside of the cage, Covington has a style inside of it that is tailor made toward neutralizing the kind of dangerous (and far more limited) strikers whose established PPV brands are perfect for Covington to cash in against while continuing to build his own. So whether it’s Poirier next or even someone like Conor McGregor in the future, Covington appears to have plenty of side projects to keep him busy while waiting to see if either an upset defeat or an abrupt retirement one day separates Usman, 34, from the UFC gold which has eluded him.
Should you find yourself physically agitated at even the sight of Covington, that only means his attempt at doing so is working. But don’t let his calculated lack of decorum go too far in allowing you to miss just how smart and talented he really is.
Covington never actually needed Donald Trump or the many half-dressed models he paid to stand next to him during interviews in order to become a great fighter. But he did need all of that to be remembered as one and to make the type of money he deserves in taking the risk of doing so.