WWE's Drew McIntyre Talks UFC's Colby Covington, Possible Tyson Fury Match, More
May 17, 2020
If Colby Covington wants a fight with Drew McIntyre, the WWE champion has three words: Just bring it.
McIntyre said he would be willing to fight the UFC welterweight inside a WWE ring or in an unsanctioned bar brawl in an interview with ESPN.
"In WWE, I beat Brock Lesnar in five minutes at WrestleMania. How would he do in an MMA fight against Brock Lesnar? Probably not very good," McIntyre said. "So if he wants this unsanctioned fight outside of WWE, I'm willing to fight him in a bar or something. There's a reason there's different weight classes. I'm about 100 pounds heavier than the guy, I'm a foot taller than the guy. I'm willing to have an actual fight with him if he wants an unsanctioned fight. A bit more eyes on the product, perfectly happy with me. I'll smash his head in, I'll shut him up, I'll break his jaw like Usman did, and then more people watch WWE."
Covington recently appeared on SB Nation's What the Heck? podcast, saying he would want to fight McIntyre in an unsanctioned match because it would be "too violent" for him to face him in WWE.
"I'm not looking to pick on someone smaller than me, and guys? Let's be honest, WWE may not want this because of the violence and it being too dangerous," Covington said. "The last time I checked? People love danger and violence, so let's give it to them. Because I expressed myself by saying that I want to go to WWE to wrestle. BUT, it sounds like Drew McIntyre expressed himself like he wants to fight. If WWE does not want to sanction this? [Then] I recommend, we can do it in a 'no sanctioned' country. Maybe we do it in the UK? Maybe we do it in Saudi Arabia? But I think there needs to be a fight between me and Drew McIntyre, you know? David versus Goliath."
Covington is listed at 5'11" and 170 pounds by the UFC, while McIntyre is billed at 6'5" and 265 pounds. To say it would be a physical mismatch would be a massive understatement.
On the flip side, McIntyre is also open to a WWE match against Tyson Fury, who provides a more fair head-to-head comparison at 6'9" and 254 pounds. Fury made his WWE debut in Saudi Arabia last year, defeating Braun Strowman in a widely panned match. The heavyweight champion has said he wants to return to WWE and go one-on-one with McIntyre.
"I'm not thinking about it in the near future. I'm about fighting our superstars, first and foremost," McIntyre said. "The way I see it is more, it's about his brand and my brand and WWE's brand. I'm more about putting it somewhere it's going to make the biggest impact. I feel personally that if we're going to get a big pay-per-view in the UK again, it needs that big marquee match. I feel like a battle of Britain with myself and Fury, and the UK might be something of a selling point for our fans and fans outside."
McIntyre maintained his sole focus right now is becoming one of the greatest champions in WWE history. He's the face of the sport during the most unprecedented time in the company's history, serving as the focal point of shows without fans—a quintessential aspect of the wrestling experience.
McIntyre is doing the best he can during the pandemic, but once fans are allowed back in arenas, don't be surprised if guys like Covington and Fury show up for one-offs to boost ratings and intrigue.