UFC welterweight contender Colby Covington was up to his usual antics when addressing his defeat this past weekend for the first time.
Saturday's event in Tampa didn't go to plan for the former interim champion, who returned on short notice to headline the year-ending UFC Fight Night at Amalie Arena.
The bout came 12 months on from Covington's third failed attempt at claiming the undisputed crown, and in order to return to winning ways, he was tasked with stalling the charge of Joaquin Buckley.
Instead, "New Mansa" continued to climb the ladder toward gold at the polarizing veteran's expense, beating him up across two rounds before a cut he caused with an elbow in the first frame proved too deep for "Chaos" to continue.
While the ending was somewhat anticlimactic and saw Dana White suggest wouldn't have happened had the fight been staged in Las Vegas, many believed the writing was already on the wall for Covington's chances of victory.
Unsurprisingly, the "many" does not include the man himself...
During a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Covington took fans behind the scenes before and after his headliner at Amalie Arena.
"Chaos" spoke to the camera post-fight, giving his first comments on a result that has left him 2-4 across his last six and 0-4 against names currently inside the welterweight top 15.
From the late-notice nature of the bout to the debated stoppage, "Chaos" had his usual litany of reasons to explain the loss ready.
We’re gonna be back stronger than ever, this is just the beginning for me," Covington said. "I wasn’t at my best tonight. I came off the couch but it was for the company, I did this for the company that I love so much that changed my life. ... I know there’s still a lot of fight in me and the best is still yet to come.
I was just getting warmed up in that fight, I think it was tied up 1-1 and I was starting to wear on him. I see him breathing out of his mouth, I was starting to catch him with more shots so it’s unfortunate that they stopped it," Covington continued. "Even Dana (White) came out and said if that was in Vegas, it would’ve never been stopped. I took his hardest shots and they didn’t phase me at all. ... We’ll come back stronger.
It remains to be seen what the future holds for the 36-year-old, but he's evidently not planning on hanging up his gloves — as some had advised following a defeat that leaves him firmly out of the championship conversation.
Buckley, meanwhile, looks set for even bigger things in 2025 after extending his perfect welterweight stint with a 4-0 run this year. Though he's prepared to step in with gold on the line should Shavkat Rakhmonov fall out of his expected shot, "New Mansa" also set his sights on Kamaru Usman post-fight in Tampa.
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