Colby Covington has found a new way to get Islam Makhachev’s attention, and it involves a racket instead of four-ounce gloves. Covington has put up a $100,000 charity challenge for Makhachev in the form of a padel match, as reported Monday by Sportskeeda and NDTV Sports. Neither outlet’s headline says whether Makhachev has answered, and nothing in the public record so far shows him taking the bait.
The timing is interesting. Covington’s offer arrives at the end of a loud week for Makhachev, who has spent it talking about how much fighting he has left. On Friday he posted that his next bout would be one of the last of his career, and he framed the choice of opponent around Carlos Prates and Michael Morales. “They say Prates is too dangerous for me and Morales is too good for me,” Makhachev wrote. “So I want to face the best of them and prove to the world once again who is the best in world.”
That post set off a debate. Some fans read it as a champion shopping for his exit. Others, including people inside the sport, pushed back hard. Former Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh Thomson wrote on X that Dana White’s line about fighters earning the right to call their shots should apply to Makhachev, whom Thomson called the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter. Thomson also drew a contrast with Jon Jones, arguing Makhachev is doing the opposite by seeking the best opposition late in his career.
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Joshua Van came to Makhachev’s defense, too. “The guy has done everything he needs in the sport,” Van said, before pointing out how quickly some people went from calling Makhachev the GOAT after his win over Ian Garry to criticizing him now.
And then, at the UFC 330 press conference, Makhachev put a number on the finish line. He said he won’t retire until he reaches 20 straight wins. “17 is not gonna be enough, I will be sure nobody will break my record,” he said. “It’s going to be 20, MINIMUM.”
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Put those two statements side by side and they fit together more neatly than the internet reaction suggests. A man sitting at 17 in a row who wants 20 is talking about three more fights, which squares with calling the next one “one of the last.” Prates or Morales would be the first step on that short road. Championship Rounds was already asking where he’d rank all-time if he walked away after beating either one.
Where Covington fits in all of this is harder to say. The padel challenge plays to his strengths, which have always included getting a reaction. It costs him nothing to post a six-figure charity dare, and every story about it keeps his name attached to the most dominant fighter on the roster.
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My take: Makhachev has a three-fight plan and a public list of opponents, and neither Prates nor Morales has to win a padel match to get on it. Covington’s offer is a decent cause wrapped around a sideshow. If he wants to share a cage with Makhachev, the route runs through actual results, and the champion has made it plain this week that he’s counting wins, not rackets.
