Colby Covington isn’t thrilled with the way things went down Dec. 14.
That night, Covington (15-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) challenged Kamaru Usman for the welterweight title at UFC 245. Against bitter rival Usman (16-1 MMA, 11-0 UFC, Covington engaged in a back-and-forth war, but suffered a fifth-round TKO loss.
Monday, Covington publicly spoke about the loss for the first time and attributed the defeat to a number of contributing factors – all of which he made sure to describe as “fake.”
“Go look and review the tape of what happened on Dec. 14 at UFC 245,” Covington told ESPN. “Give a fair call. Call it down the center. What actually happened? Let’s talk about the bullet points.”
Covington’s first “bullet point” was the fouls referee Marc Goddard called early in the fight. At one point, Goddard stopped the action for a groin shot by Covington. Later, he called a timeout for an eye poke by Covington. The American Top Team welterweight accused Usman of faking both.
“(In) the second, I get a timeout. ‘Oh, nice job. Let me call a nut shot.’ The dude got hit in the liver and was ready to fold up like a lawn chair,” Covington said. “Then all of a sudden he wants to call a nut shot? That’s the fakest foul I’ve ever heard in all of fighting.
“… In the third round, ‘Marty Fakenewsman’ gets poked in the left eye. He’s holding his right eye. He’s selling to the doctor that, ‘Oh, my right eye. Oh, my right eye.’ Dude, you got poked in the left eye. What are you doing? You’re faker than fake. That’s why you’re ‘Marty Fakenewsman.’ You’re making fake excuses. You want a momentum change. That’s what this is all about.”
Covington then transitioned to his second bullet point: Goddard. Covington claims Goddard saw him get poked in the eye in the fourth round, but did nothing about it.
“We go to the fourth round (and) oh – I get poked by ‘Marty Fakenewsman?” Covington said. “Marc Goddard looks at me, ‘No more timeouts. You guys keep fighting. No more timeouts. I’m not stopping it.’ So he sees a clear foul where I get poked.”
The next bullet point on Covington’s list of UFC 245 grievances was the finishing sequence. Not only does Covington think the stoppage was early, he took exception with the legality of Usman’s final blows. Covington said he thinks the shots landed to the back of his head.
“Let’s talk about the fifth round,” Covington said. “I’m beating his ass again. I’ve won the whole entire fight. The fight is mine. They’re about to wrap the welterweight championship around my waist. Then all of a sudden, I slip on a banana peel and I’m getting hit in the back of the head. Marc Goddard is seeing this right in front of his face. I’m getting hit in the back in the head.
“Go look at the video in the fifth round. I took four shots to the back of the head. I’m completely coherent and I cover up the back of my head. When I cover up the back of my head, he calls the fight. I stand right up and I protest. ‘What are you doing? Why are you calling the fight? I’m winning the whole entire fight. There’s less than a minute left in the fight and you see a foul in front of your face and you don’t call it. Then when you don’t see a foul in front of your face, you give him time and throw him a life raft in a river when he’s drowning.’ That’s why he’s named ‘Marc Not-so-Goodard.’”
Finally, Covington expressed displeasure with “leaked” audio that revealed he suffered a jaw injury. Covington isn’t sure if the UFC or the Nevada Athletic Commission are to blame. Regardless, he’s unhappy with the revelation.
“I also (had) to fight against the Nevada Athletic Commission releasing my corner audio,” Covington said. “I thought we were supposed to be 25 feet away in the octagon. There’s not supposed to be any audio of the corner (or) what’s going on in between rounds. How is it possible that gets broadcasted to the world?”
Covington went on the reveal he didn’t break his jaw, despite numerous reports otherwise. Additionally, Covington called for a rematch with Usman.
Colby Covington: UFC 245 loss due to fake fouls, referee missteps and slipping 'on a banana peel'
