Dana White has shed some light on the anticipated Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington welterweight title fight.
Covington secured a one-sided win over former champion Robbie Lawler at August 3’s UFC Newark. It seemed inevitable that ‘Chaos’ would face Usman next. In fact, it seemed he was next for the champ after Usman won the belt from Tyron Woodley at UFC 235 this March. But ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ underwent a significant hernia surgery that left his return up in the air.
His exact return was unknown, but last night some news arrived that offered some more concrete details. Speaking during a media scrum following the ‘Contender Series’ last night, UFC president Dana White responded ‘yeah’ twice when asked if Usman vs. Covington was headed for November’s UFC 244 from Madison Square Garden. Sources later confirmed to MMA Fighting that at least one side of the pairing has agreed to the date. Bout agreements are not yet in place, however.
Bad Blood Building
If and when the fight happens, it should garner a ton of interest. Usman has claimed that thousands of fans have been begging him to ‘kill’ Covington on social media. True to form, Covington has ramped up the trash talk directed at Usman in hopes of building buzz for the rivalry.
‘Chaos’ has been seeking a title unification bout for the past year. He won the interim welterweight title by defeating Rafael dos Anjos at June 2018’s UFC 225. After beating Lawler, he has won seven straight fights.
UFC 244 will take place on November 2, 2019, from Madison Square Garden in New York City. An official headliner for the blockbuster even has not been confirmed as of this writing.
