Colby Covington Believes “Journeyman” Jorge Masvidal Will Duck Kamaru Usman Fight

Jorge Masvidal has been trading shots with Kamaru Usman for a while now, and UFC President Dana White has said that “Gamebred” will challenge the welterweight champ next. But, Colby Covington apparently believes his former friend, turned rival, is going to back out of the title fight.

Covington says “journeyman” Masvidal won’t fight Usman, clearing path to rematch

Due to Masvidal’s awe-inspiring 2019 year, which saw him defeat Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz, the rugged vet has been in the title shot mix at 170 for a while. But, as 2019 was winding to a close, Masvidal was pushing for a bout with Conor McGregor.

In more recent months, as talk about Masvidal fighting McGregor diminished, he and Usman started trading verbal shots. The two also had a highly publicized run-in at a media event during Super Bowl week, and the stars seem to have formed quite the rivalry. Before the coronavirus became a pandemic, White said the UFC was hoping to have Masvidal fight Usman this summer.

But, despite all that, Covington believes Masvidal will ultimately, bow out of the contest. While talking to MMA Junkie recently, Covington said the following, while relaying he’s still pursuing a rematch with Usman.

“I’m most interested in my rematch with ‘Marty Fakenewsman,’” Covington said. “We have unfinished business. I mean, that was a fake fight, there was fake fouls called, and there was a fake ref who did a fake stoppage, so you can go back and look at the tapes of my last fight. I was beating ‘Marty Fakenewsman’ for 24 minutes until Marc Goddard saved his life.”

“It’s just going to depend on what happens with ‘Marty Fakenewsman,’” Covington said. “I honestly don’t think ‘Journeyman’ Jorge Masvidal, aka ‘Street Judas,’ is going to fight ‘Marty,’ so if ‘Journeyman’ Jorge doesn’t fight ‘Marty,’ then who else is left for him? It’s got to be me and my rematch. This is (expletive). I beat him that fight, and they robbed me. It was clear corruption. It was clear that Marc Goddard was paid off, and we need a level playing field and see what happens.”

Could Covington be right?

Now, aside from Colby’s claims about corruption, there are certainly a fair amount of people who believe Usman is a bad match-up for Masvidal (on account of his comprehensive game and wrestling). Yes, even though Masvidal is no slouch in the wrestling department, and even though he took out one of the best wrestlers to date in MMA, Ben Askren. So, this could be why Covington believes Masvidal might avoid the bout.

But, since there hasn’t been much talk lately about McGregor fighting Masvidal, it would be pretty surprising if “Gambred” punted on his title shot. Masvidal has made it clear that making big checks is a key priority for him, and if he can win the 170 title, his drawing power and compensation will rise significantly. Further, other than a fight with Covington or McGregor, Usman is probably the biggest fight out there for Masvidal right now.

Covington fought Usman at UFC 245 in December and was stopped in the fifth round.