MMA fans are, in aggregate, not content to get excited simply by great fights. It also takes an expression of personality, the more over the top the better. Colby Covington has assumed a heel persona, that is a calculated, less kind and gentle expansion of his actual persona.
Prior to his win over Tyron Woodley in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 36 on September 19, Covington employed language that many found offensive, and even racist. In a heated exchange with division champion Kamaru Usman, “Chaos” bragged that he had received a congratulatory call from president Donald Trump, and asked who had called Usman.
Who did you get a call from? asked Covington. Did you get a call from freaking your little tribe? Did they give you some smoke signals for you? You’re a joke.”
Woodley had advocated for the Black Lives Matter in the leadup to the fight, and Covington was not impressed.
The Black Lives Matter is a complete sham—it’s a joke, said Covington. They’re taking these people that are complete terrorists. They’re taking these people that that are criminals. These aren’t people that are hardworking Americans, blue-collar Americans. These are bad people. They’re criminals.
A number of UFC fighters and sponsors took offense at the remarks. However, during a recent appearance on Submission Radio, Colby vehemently denied saying anything racist.
There’s nothing that I said that was racist and there’s nothing I did that was racist – end of story,” said Covington. Look at the people ‘the so-called MMA journalists’ are reporting on. They’re asking a guy from London. They’re asking a guy from Nigeria. They’re asking a guy from some other country. That’s not even American politics. They’re not asking people who are in America or know anything about America.
The backlash was not warranted. I gotta say big respect to Dana White for not bowing to the woke mob. Dana White is the only commissioner that doesn’t try and force an agenda down your throat.
Like, Basketball, NFL, they’re trying to force a one-sided agenda down your throat, the woke mob. They want to force their politics down your throat and you have to accept it, and if you don’t, we’re not gonna pay you. Dana White is not like that. He’s not trying to limit my free speech. This is America. We have freedoms in America. He’s not telling me what I should and shouldn’t do, and he’s okay with which way I wanna go.
That’s what I love about Dana White and the UFC as a whole, because they don’t limit their fighters’ freedom of speech and they don’t take away our rights. They let us be who we want to be.
h/t MMA Fighting
