Photo Credit: UFC
Colby Covington lost his chance to become the UFC's undisputed world champion at welterweight and claimed judges who hate his support for former U.S president Donald Trump were behind his loss.
Going into the fight with a 17-4-0 record, Covington is now facing questions about his future in mixed martial arts after he was soundly beaten by Edwards (22-3-0), who successfully defended his belt in a unanimous decision.
The 35-year-old had only taken the fifth round in their stellar UFC 296 fight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and awarding Edwards the win seemed like a fair result on the balance of the fight.
Covington clearly feels differently, though, to the extent that he used a unique excuse for his defeat.
"The judges have never favored me. They hate me because I support Donald Trump. Everybody hates him in this building," Covington said at a press conference, wearing the New York billionaire's 'Make America Great Again' cap.
Covington has never attempted to hide his admiration for Trump, who was present at the fight, and it is now evident he is refusing to accept the outcome.
'Old and slow' Covington refuses to accept loss
The statistics back up the judges' decision. Edwards completed more significant punches (57 of 108 successful compared to Covington's 44 of 126) and punished 'Captain America', especially when striking the legs.
"He looked old and slow," said Dana White, president of the UFC, about Covington's performance.
The fighterm famously known as 'Chaos', lost another opportunity to be crowned champion after conceding two title fights to his biggest rival, Kamaru Usman. But he continues to insist his defeats are about politics as he backs the 45th president to return to office.
"I want to keep praising Trump. You can put him off, but you can't deny us," Covington added. "He will make America great again. He will reduce inflation and secure our borders. Donald Trump is the only one who can do it. Vote for him in 2024."
