Colby Covington is set to headline the UFC Fight Night in Tampa this Saturday at Amalie Arena in a highly anticipated matchup against Joaquin Buckley. Ahead of his return, it's safe to say that the former interim champion's career since 2018 has been a roller coaster of triumphs and setbacks.
The journey began with Covington claiming the interim welterweight title at UFC 225 with a win over Rafael dos Anjos. However, he was later stripped of the title due to injury.
At UFC 245 in 2019, he lost to Kamaru Usman via TKO in a bid for the undisputed belt. Covington rebounded in September 2020 with a TKO victory over Tyron Woodley, but subsequent fights brought mixed results.
"Chaos" suffered another loss to Usman at UFC 268, claimed a decisive win against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272 in March 2022, and most recently fell to Leon Edwards via decision for the title at UFC 296.
Reflecting on his year-long hiatus, Covington shared insight into his personal and professional growth during the first episode of UFC Journey for this weekend's main event on ESPN MMA's YouTube channel.
It’s been a year since my last fight, and I’ve used that time to really grow myself as a martial artist and as a person,” Covington said. “Mentally speaking, I’m in a better place than I’ve ever been. After I lost three shots at the undisputed title, it felt like the lowest of lows. I lost and forgot who I was, and that was a good reminder that woke me up again. I just had to cancel out the bad energy.
Covington emphasized his renewed commitment to his goal of becoming the undisputed champion.
I knew that I couldn’t let that hype and ego get to my head. I had to train harder to be the No. 1 contender again because all I ever wanted was to be the undisputed champion. That’s all I cared about.
As the fight against Buckley approaches, Covington sees this as a chance to rewrite past wrongs and silence the critics who have doubted him.