It’s tough to say if Colby “Chaos” Covington has always been a bad sport, although it’s very easy to pinpoint the exact moment he became the biggest heel in the UFC.
Challenging champion Kamaru Usman for the welterweight title in the UFC 245 main event, Covington has become MMA’s greatest villain. He’s the man who insulted the entire nation of Brazil and has trolled fans for years with his Nerdbash campaign. He openly cavorts with the first family of the United States, along with a seemingly endless string of compensated starlets, and on December 14, he’ll finally fight for the UFC title — a real one, not the belt he took to the Oval Office to meet with President Trump.
In honor of his UFC 245 main event, which goes down on Pay Per View on ESPN+, it’s time to take a look back and examine how Covington rose to prominence … it may not be pretty.
Years before he climbed his way to the upper reaches of the UFC welterweight rankings, Covington was a mere heel in training.
A wrestler from Oregon, Covington entered the UFC as a valued and undefeated prospect. He racked up a few wins, and began to make some noise as a name to watch, but just as he started to gain momentum, Covington committed a cardinal sin: he was submitted by a striker … in less than two minutes!
At that point, most fans and pundits believed that would be the last we would ever hear of Colby Covington inside the Octagon. But that’s when the “Chaos” ensued.
Watching and rehashing some old Chael Sonnen promos, Covington used poor sportsmanship as his ticket to the top. And while it may not have been the classiest trajectory to a title shot, Colby Covington has developed and perfected his lowest common denominator schtick, supported by his seven-fight win streak.
Here’s how it all came together for Covington …
Step One: Kick Them While They’re Down
Rebounding from his lone UFC loss, a first round submission to Warlley Alves at UFC 194 in December 2015, Covington secured a submission of his own on a fight night card in Ottawa, Canada. The win helped “Chaos” earn a spot on the undercard of the mega-selling UFC 202: Diaz vs. McGregor 2 card.
Dominating UFC newcomer Max Griffin, Covington won the bout by third round TKO. However, rather than helping his opponent up off the canvas or showing any concern whatsoever, Covington taunted a dejected Griffin, barking incessantly at his fallen opponent.
It’s difficult to determine if this was the moment that Covington transformed into his heel persona, but the behavior was certainly off putting to some, while others ate it up.
Step Two: The Insult
Keeping his win streak alive with a pair of dominant decisions (I mean, who ragdolls Dong Hyun “Stungun” Kim 30-25?), Covington chose Sao Paulo, Brazil as the location for the biggest heel move of his career.
Defeating former two-time title challenger Demain Maia via decision, Covington grabbed the microphone after the fight to unleash incendiary remarks about the nation of Brazil, calling the country a “dump.” He then referred to the country’s citizens as “filthy animals,” and the UFC was never quite the same.
Escorted out of the arena by security, Covington has spent much of the last two years accompanied by some sort of backup. The remarks burned bridges with teammates at American Top Team and soured his relationship with a large chunk of the MMA community; however, the language put Covington on the radar, and his mouth suddenly became the most valuable muscle in his body.
Step Three: The Presidential Treatment
Following the win over Maia, Covington was booked into an interim title fight against former champion Rafael dos Anjos, a Brazilian national. The fight was viewed as dos Anjos’ chance to avenge the entire country of Brazil. Instead, Covington dominated the fight, clearly winning the contest on every judges’ scorecard.
As if “Chaos” wasn’t insufferable enough already, a UFC belt made his bark and bite even bigger. Then he slapped on the red MAGA hat and blagged his way to the oval office, leaning on UFC president Dana White for a Presidential introduction.
Meeting with President Trump, Covington used the government clout to proclaim himself the true champ. Most fans weren’t buying it, but there was certainly a contingent that fell for the “Chaos.” It was a veteran heel move on Covington’s part, and the association with the Trumps (Don Jr. and Eric are both fans) definitely paid dividends.
Step Four: Staying Relevant
Unfortunately for Covington, a proper title unification bout never came to fruition. Passing on a shot at then-champion Woodley, Covington fell out of title contention as challengers like Darren Till and Kamaru Usman stepped over him in line. Still, Covington managed to keep his name relevant.
On one occasion, he stalked UFC President Dana White and surprised the boss at a high roller black jack table. He also showed up to the UFC 235 open workouts with his interim belt, red MAGA hat, and a mini megaphone to troll Usman.
The antics managed to keep Covington’s name in the news cycle, more so than his dalliances with starlets and the insults he hurled, en masse, at the entire MMA fan base. However, the behavior also sent Usman’s manager on the warpath, as he confronted and attempted to attack Covington in the buffet line at the Palms casino.
It’s been a rather eventful couple of years for Colby Covington, as he’s transformed himself into the biggest heel in the UFC.
The tactics and methods certainly aren’t for everyone, but Covington has managed to climb his way all the way to the top of the division, and has backed up all the trash talk and trolling with some dominant performances inside the Octagon. And whether you’re a fan of his lowest common denominator schtick or not, Covington has forced fans to care about his upcoming title fight against Kamaru Usman because, well, if you like him, then it’s easy to know what you’re rooting for, and if you can’t stand the guy, well, it’s easy to get behind Usman, who will have the opportunity to shove his fist in Covington’s big, big mouth on December 14.
Usman and Covington square off for the welterweight title in the UFC 245 PPV main event on ESPN+.
The UFC 245 PPV main card on ESPN+ begins at 7 p.m. PST / 10 p.m. EST.
UFC 245 Fight Card
UFC 245 PPV main card (ESPN+)
Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington – UFC welterweight title fight
Max Holloway vs. Alexander Volkanovski – UFC featherweight title fight
Amanda Nunes vs. Germaine de Randamie – UFC bantamweight title fight
Jose Aldo vs. Marlon Moraes
Urijah Faber vs. Petr Yan
UFC 245 Preliminaries (ESPN 2) 5 p.m. PST / 8 p.m. EST
Mike Perry vs. Geoff Neal
Ketlen Vieira vs. Irene Aldana
Matt Brown vs. Ben Saunders
UFC 245 Early Prelims (UFC Fight Pass) 1:30 p.m. PST / 4:30 p.m. EST
Chase Hooper vs. David Teymur
Brandon Moreno vs. Kai Kara-France
Jessica Eye vs. Viviane Araujo
Punahele Soriano vs. Oskar Piechota
*Fight Card Subject to Change
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