4 Best Opponents for Colby Covington's Next Fight
Colby Covington's fighting future has never been more uncertain.
The trash-talking 35-year-old can fairly be called one of the best welterweights of the modern UFC era, but in his last matchup, a lopsided decision loss to reigning champion Leon Edwards, he put forth one of the worst fights of his career. He had some success with his wrestling in the championship rounds but otherwise looked completely disengaged, landing just 44 significant strikes during the 25-minute fight.
With his loss to Edwards, Covington is 2-3 in his last five fights, dating back nearly four years. His wins in that stretch came against Tyron Woodley and Jorge Masvidal, both of whom entered the Octagon on losing streaks and were clearly nearing the ends of their careers.
At this point, Covington is way outside the welterweight title picture, and unless he mounts one of the most dramatic career comebacks ever in the back half of his 30s, which seems unlikely, he will never be the division's undisputed champion.
Still, he seems determined to continue fighting, and even in the twilight of his career, remains one of the biggest names in the UFC, due in large part to his controversial trash talk. That means that he can still expect some big fights, even if his days as a serious title threat are over.
It remains to be seen when Covington will step back into the Octagon—he tends to take long breaks between his fights—but here are four opponents we think make sense if he gets back in there soon.
Stephen Thompson
1 of 4
Soon after his decision loss to Edwards, Covington began setting the stage for his next fight by calling out another long-serving, successful welterweight in Stephen Thompson.
"I'm gonna focus on what's next," Covington said at the UFC 296 post-fight press conference. "There's a guy that's been talking a lot of s--t to me in the media, Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson. Everybody thinks he's a nice guy. He's had a lot to say about me, so I'd love to see him say that to me in the cage, in the Octagon."
Covington and Thompson have been in each other's orbits for the better part of a decade but, somewhat miraculously, have yet to meet in the Octagon. Now, when Covington is riding an embarrassing loss to Edwards, and Thompson is riding a second-round submission loss to undefeated contender Shavkat Rakhmonov, the timing seems perfect.
It would be high-stakes, as neither fighter can afford another loss, and it looks like an interesting style clash on paper, as Covington is a wrestler through and through, and Wonderboy is one of the division's best strikers.
Ian Garry
2 of 4
Wonderboy was not the only welterweight in Covington's sights after UFC 296. Soon after the card, the welterweight veteran expressed interest in a fight with undefeated contender and fellow trash talker Ian Garry.
"I think he probably wants to settle the differences in the Octagon," Covington told Tucker Carlson after exchanging some unsavory trash talk with the Irishman in the lead-up to UFC 296. "It just so happens I like to fight in the Octagon, so if it needs to happen one day, I'd be honored to settle that."
Garry has now won five fights in the Octagon—including dominant defeats of Daniel Rodriguez and Neil Magny in his last two outings—and is ranked No. 10 in the welterweight division. He'll get another big test when he battles No. 8 contender Geoff Neal at UFC 298 on February 18, and if he passes it, he will be in prime position for a fight with an established star like Covington.
Before UFC 296, this would have been considered a very difficult style matchup for Garry, who is a striker first and foremost, but after Covington's uninspired performance against Edwards, it now looks quite competitive on paper.
Dustin Poirier
3 of 4
Covington still has some interesting options in the welterweight Top 15, but one of the most alluring potential opponents for him is actually a lightweight: Dustin Poirier.
The two accomplished MMA veterans were once training partners at American Top Team. However, their professional relationship fell apart when Covington ramped up his trash-talking gimmick.
Covington burned so many bridges at American Top Team that he was ultimately kicked out of the gym, but his beef with Poirier is still sizzling. It might soon be time for them to settle it.
Poirier has maintained far more goodwill with fans than Covington, but is in a similar position to his former training partner, having suffered a few key losses over the last few years that will keep him out of the title picture for the time being. His 2023 knockout loss to Justin Gaethje was a particularly significant speed bump in that regard.
UFC CEO Dana White announced over the weekend that Poirier will take on rising French contender Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 299 on March 9. Whether the No. 3 lightweight contender beats the Frenchman or not, a fight with Covington makes sense. If he wins, he'll still be behind the likes of Gaethje, Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan in the race for a title shot. If he loses, he'll be even shorter on options than he is now.
Either way, call Covington.
Conor McGregor
4 of 4
Covington has called Conor McGregor out several times over the course of his UFC career, but despite his clear delusions of grandeur, has never been quite a big enough name to catch the Irish superstar's attention.
That being said, McGregor is 1-3 in four fights dating back to 2018, and if he loses his rumored June 29 fight with Michael Chandler—which will allegedly occur at middleweight—he's going to be very short on viable options. Even as the biggest star in MMA history, he will be miles from title contention in any of the divisions he's competed in and will most likely have to settle for fights with opponents like Covington, who would not have been on his radar a few years ago.
A McGregor vs. Covington fight would definitely generate a lot of buzz—their pre-fight trash talk would guarantee that—and luckily for Covington, it looks like a very winnable fight on paper. For all his accomplishments, McGregor has always been vulnerable to takedowns, and that weakness would be exacerbated by Covington's size advantage in this potential fight.
It probably won't happen unless McGregor loses to Chandler and decides to stick with MMA anyway, which is by no means a certainty, but it's not impossible we could see this fight in the last quarter of 2024.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
