It’s UFC 264 fight week, and Colby Covington has stirred the pot.
On Tuesday, Covington released the previously teased video of Dustin Poirier dropping a teammate in sparring to his social media platforms and accused him of being dirty. Fighters, however, largely were quick to defend Poirier, shrugging off his actions as nothing out of the ordinary based on what the video shows.
The timing of Covington’s leak comes five days before Poirier’s highly anticipated trilogy fight against Conor McGregor.
The video shows Poirier (27-6 MMA, 20-6 UFC), in full protective gear, punching and dropping a sparring partner. Shortly after the unnamed fighter crumples to the canvas against the cage, Poirier lets out an, “And new!” bellow.
“The guy wearing full nerf gear head to toe to protect his face and his feelings is Poirier,” Covington wrote on Twitter. “The guy with no headgear, wrestling credentials or brain cells left is ‘Khabib.’ @DustinPoirier Good guy? Bad guy? You be the judge.”
The guy wearing full nerf gear head to toe to protect his face and his feelings is Poirier. The guy with no headgear, wrestling credentials or brain cells left is “khabib.” @DustinPoirier Good guy? Bad guy? You be the judge #AndNew #UFC264 pic.twitter.com/EMMFwC2b4E
— Colby Covington (@ColbyCovMMA) July 6, 2021
The clip, which Covington teased in an interview with MMA Junkie in May, is not from Poirier’s training camp for his title challenge against Khabib Nurmagomedov – nor is it an amateur who was dropped, MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn has learned.
Glad people can now see for themselves the way Colby Covington described the Dustin Poirier sparring video in our interview was misleading. Nothing out of the norm.
Also worth noting that was not an amateur fighter he was sparring with, nor was it in the Khabib camp. Carry on.
— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohnMMA) July 6, 2021
While the video provides insight not often seen in the public eye, many fighters, including UFC veterans past and present, jumped to Poirier’s defense to explain that the scene isn’t unusual for those sparring at the highest level.
Fighters defend Dustin Poirier after Colby Covington leaks sparring video: ‘Nothing dirty about it’
