Colby Covington is one of the most polarising fighters on the UFC roster, and once he is on the mic, ‘Chaos’ doesn’t shy away from letting his thoughts be known. However, for his UFC 296 press conference against Leon Edwards, ‘Rocky’ made sure to match his opponent’s energy.
This time around, Covington, known for his peculiar fashion choices, wore an ensemble resembling that of former President and American founding father George Washington, while branding himself to be ‘General Covington.’
The welterweight champion, however, took that opportunity to make fun of ‘Chaos’ for his choice of outfit. In a divisive statement, he called his opponent:
“The guy comes here dressed like a f*****g drag queen, you know. I don’t know what he is trying to go for, but fair play to him.”
Being as outspoken as he is, the former interim champion quickly shot back at Edwards’ with a slew of insults:
“Of course, you don’t know what I’m going for. You didn’t even graduate elementary school… Alright, I’m the people’s champion… did you come out here to support this red coat mother f****rs?…Or did you come to be a part of the American Revolution?”
Leon Edwards and Colby Covington will lock horns in the main event of UFC 296 on Saturday, December 16, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. ‘Rocky’ is a -155 favorite against Covington, who is a +130 underdog.
Catch Leon Edwards’ and Colby Covington’s back and forth below (5:44):
UFC 296: Stephen Thompson picks Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington
Perennial welterweight contender Stephen Thompson believes Leon Edwards will get the job done against Colby Covington at UFC 296.
During a media segment for UFC 291, ‘Wonderboy’ predicted that Covington’s wrestling is going to prove ineffective against the Englishman, saying:
“You saw what [Kamaru] Usman did to Colby in their last two fights, right?.. Colby is known for his cardio, but Leon showed in his last two fights that he has got cardio with the best of them and he’s got the grappling to defend the takedowns and get back up.”
Thompson added:
“Kamaru is a very strong wrestler, I think he is a lot stronger than Colby. So if Usman couldn’t hold Leon down, I don’t think Colby could. I think the fight stays standing, and Leon picks him apart.”
Stephen Thompson will be hoping to get himself closer to the welterweight crown with a win against Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 296. However, the ‘Nomad’ is a -650 favorite for the matchup, with Thompson as a +470 underdog.
Catch Stephen Thompson’s comments below (5:31):