Is Leon Edwards fighting Colby Covington next? 'Chaos' claims 'Rocky' may face consequences if he turns down

Leon Edwards successfully defended his welterweight throne against Kamaru Usman at UFC 286 via majority decision. The UFC appears to be interested in booking Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington next, considering 'Chaos' traveled to the UK and made weight to serve as the backup fighter for the main event.

UFC president Dana White has repeatedly claimed that if not for Kamaru Usman's dominant reign, Covington would have been the champion. The former interim UFC welterweight champion has lost twice to Usman at UFC 245 and UFC 268 respectively. Since then, he has only competed once, scoring a dominant unanimous decision victory over bitter rival Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272.

Jorge Masvidal and Gilbert Burns both boo after Dana White reiterates that Colby Covington will get the next title shot 🗣️ #UFC287 https://t.co/3xtPxunX4f

While the UFC is set to book Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington next, 'Rocky' believes Covington does not deserve to fight for the title. According to Edwards, despite not being injured, Covington has been inactive while other viable contenders have remained active, fighting top contenders in the division.

Covington reacted to Edwards' comments in a recent interview with Submission Radio, claiming that the 31-year-old might get stripped if he turns down the fight:

"We had a great talk [Covington and UFC top brass]. He's [Edwards] got nowhere to go. If Leon doesn't want to fight, I've already been assured that they'll just strip him and I'm next in line. The fact that he's trying to cry and act all privileged is just funny. He has nowhere to go. Dana White has assured me that I'm fighting him this summer. I don't know the location yet."

Catch Colby Covington's comments below (12:20):

Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington: Robert Whittaker believes 'Chaos' deserves the title shot next

The prospect of Colby Covington challenging Leon Edwards for the welterweight throne hasn't gone down well with the top-ranked welterweight contenders. UFC president Dana White has stated publicly that the promotion plans to have welterweight champion Edwards defend his title against Covington this summer when the promotion returns to England.

Another UFC title fight in London?! 😱

Dana White suggested at the #UFC287 post-fight press conference that the anticipated bout between Leon Edwards 🆚 Colby Covington is being targeted for London in July 🏆 https://t.co/MckS3Q1IpI

While many fans, including Edwards himself, are unhappy with the decision, former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker sees no problem with it. Discussing the potential clash in a recent interview with LowKick MMA, Whittaker stated:

"I think Colby does deserve it. I know people are saying otherwise, but I think in my opinion Colby deserves that shot just because he has put a beating on most people.”

He added:

“The (Kamaru) Usman fights, I think stylistically, styles do make fights, and Usman and Colby, they just match up. It’s a hard fight for each other. It’s a hard fight for Colby Covington. Whereas Masvidal and Leon is a good fight for Masvidal, but I think Colby’s a bad fight for Leon. It’s kind of that triangle rock-paper-scissors sort of formula.”