Colby Covington might not be finished with the octagon. MMA Sucka reported Friday that the RAF star has revealed which UFC icons could pull him back into MMA. The reporting we reviewed didn’t spell out the specific names, so treat this as a door cracked open, not a fight booked.
What Covington did put on the record, at length, was his view of the welterweight title picture he left behind. Speaking to MMA Junkie, he defended Islam Makhachev’s decision to sit out UFC 336 and called the interim belt attached to Carlos Prates vs. Michael Morales unearned.
Makhachev (29-1 MMA, 18-1 UFC) passed on a Jan. 30 title defense against Prates at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. The champion said he doesn’t see a clear-cut contender and wanted Prates and Morales to settle it themselves. The UFC obliged and slotted them into the co-main event with interim gold on the line. That’s the part Covington can’t stomach, given that Makhachev defended the belt against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330 in August.
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“Islam just fought, like two or three months ago, I thought, and he just had a title defense,” Covington said. “Give him a little time to get through Ramadan. The January date for him didn’t work out, give him some time to fight him after Ramadan. Those guys aren’t worthy to be fighting for an interim title. What have those guys done?”
Then he went after the unbeaten guy specifically.
“Michael Morales has fought nobody. He’s been tested by nobody,” Covington said, adding that Morales hasn’t had “a premier marquee matchup, a main event shot with an ex-champ or a title challenger.”
Morales is 19-0 overall and 7-0 in the UFC. Prates sits at 24-7 and 7-1 inside the promotion. For all the shade, Covington still praised the UFC and Hunter Campbell for seeing something in the booking, and he expects fireworks. He called it “an all-striking battle” and said someone will get knocked out.
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His pick lines up with the oddsmakers, who opened Prates as a slight favorite.
“I think Prates is a little cleaner striking,” Covington said. “Morales swings recklessly, and I just don’t think he’ll be ready for Prates’ pinpoint accuracy.”
My take: Covington’s right that the interim tag is premature when the champ fought in August and only wants to wait out Ramadan. But “fought nobody” is a lazy read on a guy who’s 7-0 in the UFC and hasn’t lost as a pro. Nobody goes 19-0 by accident. And if Covington wants to come back for an icon, he could start by not dismissing the next generation of welterweights he’d have to walk past to get there. Prates and Morales settle it Jan. 30 in Toronto.
