Getty Colby Covington after his welterweight fight against Jorge Masvidal in Las Vegas, Nevada.
There are no games bigger in the US than the Super Bowl and, on Sunday, Kansas City Chiefs take on the San Francisco 49ers at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
It is a big week for sports in Southern Nevada as, between the Golden Knights’ big win over the Edmonton Oilers, Top Rank boxing on Thursday, LIV Golf, a WWE press conference, Power Slap, and a UFC Fight Night, Las Vegas shows it really is the sports capital of the world.
But one athlete who appears to be shunning the city this week is UFC fighter Colby Covington, who told Mediate that he “can’t support” the NFL or the Super Bowl.
Covington’s frustrations with football appear to date back to 2016-2017 when the quarterback Colin Kaepernick sat down during the national anthem.
Kaepernick later said it was to protest acts of police brutality. This generated divided discourse throughout the US.
Covington said: “I lost interest in football and in sports when they started kneeling and disrespecting our flag and disrespecting all the soldiers that came before us that gave us these opportunities in America.
“We wouldn’t be free and have the opportunities to be professional athletes if it wasn’t for our servicemen, our veterans.
“Those are the people that I look up to and I respect the most.”
He added: “I’ve been so turned off by sports. I don’t follow it. I don’t care about it.
“No,” Covington finished. “I won’t be in Vegas.”
Covington’s Stick May Be Stale
The 35-year-old wrestler Covington started breaking through as a combat sports personality when he echoed ring-wing talking points before, and after, his fight nights.
This gradually built him a fanbase and he leveraged that into meetings with the Trump family, and also into prominent matches involving UFC’s biggest names like Rafael dos Anjos, Robbie Lawler, Kamaru Usman, Tyron Woodley, and Jorge Masvidal.
Though he won more of those fights than he lost in that run, he, significantly, tasted defeat each and every time he stepped up to challenge for the UFC welterweight championship.
The same thing happened December, 2023 when he challenged Leon Edwards for the title at UFC 296 in Las Vegas and lost a lopsided decision to the Brit, prompting UFC boss Dana White to remark post-fight that Covington looked “old and slow.”
As a columnist at The Sporting Tribune pointed out, his fighting style now appears as “old and slow” as the caricature he plays.
Regardless, Covington Wants To Rise Again
Despite the setbacks, Covington is determined to rise once again up the UFC welterweight rankings.
Per Submission Radio, the veteran fighter is targeting a bout against Stephen Thompson.
“I think ‘Wonderboy,’ makes the most sense,” Covington said.
It would pit “the ultimate nice guy” in Thompson, against “the ultimate bad guy” in Covington, he added.
“[He] had a lot of things to say. ‘Oh, Colby’s going to get knocked out. Oh, I’ll knock out Colby.’ Oh, all these things. He’s No. 6 in the world, I’m No. 5 in the world right now. That fight makes the most sense.”