If there were any doubt as to who is getting the next welterweight title shot after tonight’s UFC 228 pay per view, Dana White has put them to rest. There have been two names at the top of the list for who will next challenge for the welterweight championship after tonight: Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington. Now, there is only one:
“Colby Covington is going to get the next shot,” Dana White told BT Sport. “Usman got the opportunity (as a backup option) because Covington is hurt.”
So there you have it. Despite Colby Covington turning down a title shot against Tyron Woodley to have surgery to correct a nasal issue, a surgery which Dana White himself believes could have waited, and despite Kamaru Usman’s claims that a fight against Covington has been offered to him multiple times, including after the Till/Woodley fight was finalized, and despite Kamaru Usman making weight to serve as the backup for the UFC 228 main event, none of the above facts have shifted Covington from his place as the #1 contender for the welterweight title.
But in Covington’s mind, he is not the #1 contender, but the rightful champion. The fact that the two combatants of tonight’s main event are guaranteed to face him next lends at least a degree of credence to Covington’s position that may initially sound like bluster:
“Let them fight it out for the No. 1 contender’s spot so they can fight the real champ,” Covington told FloCombat. “The people’s champ. America’s champ, Colby “Chaos” Covington.”
Do you believe Colby Covington should get the next welterweight title shot?
