Jorge Masvidal makes deal to drop felony charges in Colby Covington incident, pleads guilty to misdemeanor battery

The outside-the-cage incident between former friends Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington has reached a resolution.

Masvidal on Monday pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge in a Miami-Dade County (Fla.) court as part of a plea deal with the state of Florida’s prosecution team to have two other felony charges dropped.

Masvidal pleaded guilty to the lone misdemeanor battery count in person in Miami alongside his attorney, Saam Zanganeh. He was sentenced to time served – in essence just previous appearances at police stations and in court hearings – and court costs. The prosecution’s representation said Covington was given the option to appear in court, but declined.

Masvidal, 38, attacked Covington outside a Miami restaurant in March 2022, just a few weeks after Masvidal lost a lopsided unanimous decision to Covington at UFC 272. The attack resulted in injuries to Covington, including broken teeth and a concussion, Florida state attorneys said in the original filed complaint.

Two felony charges of battery and criminal mischief were dropped. Covington is Masvidal’s former friend, roommate and teammate, but now bitter enemy. Judge Zachary James accepted Masvidal’s plea deal and asked him a list of standard questions to ensure he was making his decision to enter a guilty plea in sound mind, then released Masvidal to be fingerprinted – a result of the guilty verdict, since Masvidal now will have the verdict as part of his criminal record.

Masvidal faced up to 15 years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine for the second-degree felony aggravated battery charge, plus additional penalties possible for the criminal mischief charge. Masvidal maintained his innocence since the incident occurred until the time of his guilty plea Monday.