LAS VEGAS – Colby Covington’s next fight will be against UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, company president Dana White has revealed.
Covington’s (15-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) one-sided unanimous decision victory over Robbie Lawler at UFC on ESPN 5 this past weekend will indeed get him his elusive shot at the undisputed UFC welterweight title, which is currently held by Usman (15-1 MMA, 10-0 UFC).
The triumph, in which he threw a record amount of strikes for a UFC bout, marked Covington’s seventh consecutive win at 170 pounds, and White said the performance proved he should be next in line.
“That’s why I put Covington on ESPN against a guy like Lawler,” White told MMA Junkie at a media scrum on Tuesday. “You can say whatever you want about Covington. You don’t like him, you don’t this, that, whatever. He put on a clinic against Lawler, who is a beast.
“Lawler’s been in all the big fights, former world champion, hits like a truck and Colby completely shut him down. His cardio was impressive, and the way that he beat Lawler was even more impressive.”
Although Covington’s winning streak and status as former interim titleholder is a good resume for the opportunity with Usman, the heat between the two tips the scale in his favor even further. There was a post-fight confrontation with Usman where both men were held back by security, and that will certainly be used as promotional support for the contest.
White did not express a possible date or location for the welterweight championship contest. Usman and Covington have each mentioned UFC 244 in November as a possible target date, but White was non-committal about booking the fight for the Madison Square Garden showcase.
