LAS VEGAS – If you thought Colby Covington might keep things remotely civil in the final days before his UFC 272 clash with Jorge Masvidal, you most certainly were mistaken.
It took less than two minutes for Covington (16-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) to start taking very personal shots at Masvidal (35-15 MMA, 12-8 UFC) at Wednesday’s media day at the UFC Apex, labeling “Gamebred” a liar and bringing his estranged wife into the pre-fight banter.
“You can’t believe anything that guy says,” Covington said. “He’s full of lies, full of manipulation to the media to make him look like the good guy.
“You know, he likes to always say I was sleeping on his couch. Nah, this is 2022. Get your gender pronouns right. I slept on her couch, and by her, I mean his wife. They’re still legally married. Maritza Masvidal, the lady that sacrificed it all so we could chase our dreams together, you know, so we could just be focused on our dreams. He’s out there cheating on his wife, cheating on his kids. So Saturday night, this is for Maritza and all the people he backstabbed.”
Covington and Masvidal’s relationship dates back to their time as former American Top Team training partners and roommates in the early stages of their careers. In more recent times, the pair have become bitter rivals, with Covington not viewing anything as off-limits when it comes to insulting his former friend.
When asked about Masvidal’s claim that Covington would be left in critical condition following Saturday’s card at T-Mobile Arena, “Chaos” lived up to his moniker.
“The only people that are in critical condition on Sunday are his kids,” Covington said. “He turned his back on them. He doesn’t want to own up and be the dad that he should be to them. He’s a deadbeat dad. He’s a deadbeat person, and he’s just going to be playing dead on Saturday night on pay-per-view.”
At UFC 272, the talk comes to an end, and the two will get the chance to settle their differences while collecting a paycheck, as well. Oftentimes in MMA history, angry buildups are left behind after the final bell rings, but Covington has no such desire.
“Absolutely not,” Covington said. “Who wants to bury the hatchet with a criminal, with a thief, with a dirtbag scumbag? More of his family likes me than they even like him, so I’m not burying it with this dirtbag criminal.
“He’s going to have to leave Miami. The city isn’t big enough for both of us, so if I see him in Miami, he’s getting dropped on his head.”
Whether the hatred Covington is expressing is truly genuine or is simply a little pre-fight hype to sell a couple extra pay-per-views may never be fully understood. After all, Covington has certainly taken his persona to increasingly new levels of bold over the past few years. But for now, at least, the former interim UFC welterweight champion isn’t backing off.
“I’m going to inflict a lot of pain on this guy,” Covington said “He’s talked recklessly and just a lot of lies and trying to make me look like the bad guy, trying to put himself in a positive light, so I’m just going to inflict pain on him.
“I’m not going to think about all the emotions and all the energy and our past. I’m just going to think about the present, in the moment, and putting that guy in his death chair.”
