Colby Covington has picked up a second grappling date for November. A submission-only match between Covington and Dillon Danis is set for November 3, according to a post from Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) on X on Wednesday. The post didn’t name a promotion, a venue or any rules beyond submission-only. Until someone releases a poster, treat this as reported and not yet official.
The timing is what makes you squint. Covington is already booked to headline Real American Freestyle’s first event in Abu Dhabi on November 14 at Etihad Arena, where he faces Khamzat Chimaev for the cruiserweight crossover title, per Bloody Elbow and MMA Fighting. If both dates hold, Covington grapples Danis and then walks onto the RAF wrestling mats against Chimaev 11 days later.
That RAF card is loaded. It also features Arman Tsarukyan vs. Neiman Gracie, Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Urijah Faber, Zabit Magomedsharipov vs. Giga Chikadze and Jordan Burroughs vs. Azamat Nurykau. Julianna Peña makes her promotional debut there against Diana Avsaragova, her first competition in 17 months. The show runs the same night as UFC 334 in New York, where Kayla Harrison defends the bantamweight title against Amanda Nunes at Madison Square Garden.
View post on X
Where Covington stands
Covington’s most recent result in the reporting is a loss. Joaquin Buckley beat him by doctor’s stoppage TKO, and that win capped a six-fight streak for Buckley. Things have gone the other way for Buckley since. He’s now 21-8 after back-to-back decision losses to Kamaru Usman and Sean Brady. He headlines UFC Fight Night 291 in Edmonton this Saturday against Mike Malott (14-2-1), who is a -140 favorite.
Covington has kept his name in circulation anyway. After Gable Steveson was knocked out by Sean Sharaf 12 seconds into their fight at UFC 331, Covington and Matt Brown both suggested Steveson think about leaving Jon Jones’ camp, Yahoo Sports reported. Jones has since said the team needs to add a lot more sparring.
The Championship Rounds post didn’t include anything on Danis’s recent activity or how the matchup came together. That’s the next detail worth watching for, along with who’s actually promoting the November 3 show.
Quick take
Two grappling contests in 11 days means either a guy who has been living on the mats all fall or a scheduling headache waiting to happen. I’d also like the rules sheet before anyone calls this a tune-up. Submission-only has no points, no stalling your way to a decision and no escape hatch. The only way to win is to make the other man tap. One bad leg entanglement on November 3 can cost Covington the knee he needs to shoot on Chimaev on November 14. If I’m in Covington’s corner, my first call is to find out whether heel hooks are legal. If they are, that’s a much riskier warmup than he needs heading into the biggest payday on his calendar.
