Chael Sonnen says Colby Covington is amongst the top 5 welterweights of all time
Chael Sonnen believes that Colby Covington should be regarded as one of the best welterweights of all time. Sonnen referred to a list made by Jon Anik, who previously named his top five welterweights in history. Covington is the only fighter on Anik's list who hasn't been a welterweight champion.
In a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, 'The American Gangster' agreed with the UFC commentator. He believes Covington's name should appear next to the likes of Kamaru Usman and Georges St-Pierre:
"Jon Anik was asked about his list of the top five welterweights ever. He put all the names you think. He paid homage to the 'GSPs' and Tyron Woodleys. Of course, you can't talk about that without mentioning Matt Hughes. He did put Colby Covington, Covington who has never been champion of the world. He's the only non-champion of the world in Jon's list. Jon is absolutely right. Covington is top five ever."
Sonnen is convinced that Covington would've been the welterweight champion in any other era of the sport's history. The former middleweight and light heavyweight title challenger also questioned why we don't refer to 'Chaos' as the BMF champion:
"I'm fully convinced at 170lbs in any other era, Colby Covington is champion of the world. Dana White went as far as to say if Kamaru Usman didn't exist then Colby is the world champion. I watched Covington have an interim championship in which he never lost. He woke up one day and wasn't champion. I watched him beat the reigning 'BMF' champion [Masvidal] and not become the BMF champion."
Covington remains the No.1-ranked fighter in the welterweight division despite two losses to champion Usman. 'Chaos' will likely have to win again against another ranked opponent to have a third chance at the belt. Fans will be hoping he faces welterweight prospect Khamzat Chimaev next.
Watch Chael Sonnen talk about Colby Covington here:
Colby Covington may struggle in court, says Anthony Smith
Fans still don't know about Colby Covington's next UFC appearance, which could be because of his legal issues. After being attacked by Jorge Masvidal in March, both Covington and his friend-turned-rival are set to appear in court in August.
Speaking on the latest episode of the Believe You Me podcast, light heavyweight contender Anthony Smith stated that Covington may have a hard time arguing his case in court. This comes after the California native said he suffered a brain injury due to the attack.
"Didn't they come out and some of the records that got released or something, and Colby was saying he had some head damage or injury? That's really hard to argue in court when you're suing someone for a lot of sh*t ton of money and then you can't take a fight."
Jorge Masvidal has pleaded not guilty to two charges of aggravated assault and criminal mischief.
Watch Anthony Smith and Michael Bisping discuss the assault case here: