Colby Covington says he already feels like the champion after “beating” Kamaru Usman at UFC 268: “I came back and rallied”
Colby Covington believes he should’ve had his hand raised in his rematch with Kamaru Usman.
Usman had scored a fifth-round TKO victory over Covington in what some considered to be the 2019 fight of the year. In Nov. 2021, the two had their rematch for Usman’s welterweight gold. Usman won a close, but unanimous decision.
Colby Covington Believes He Should’ve Won Kamaru Usman Rematch
Colby Covington spoke to ESPN and shared his belief that he made a comeback in his rematch against Kamaru Usman that should’ve swayed the judges (h/t MMAMania.com).
“I thought I came back and rallied, won the last three rounds. I dropped him in the fourth.
“I feel like I beat him that night,” he continued. “Just ‘cause they didn’t put the belt around me and three judges cageside didn’t score the fight for me, they gave him three rounds to two against me, that’s okay. Those aren’t the people that are gonna determine my value, my worth on this planet. The fans are impressed by my work, that’s all that matters to me. I feel like I am the champion.”
Covington is now set to challenge reigning UFC Welterweight Champion Leon Edwards. They will share the Octagon inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC 296 will be headlined by that matchup on December 16.
Edwards stunned the MMA world when he defeated Usman via head-kick knockout in the final round of their UFC 278 title fight. Usman had been well on his way to a unanimous decision win. In their last meeting at UFC 286, Edwards showed tremendous growth in his game, holding up with Usman’s grappling and getting ahead on points. “Rocky” won that battle via hard-fought majority decision.
