MMA News Roundup: UFC accused of "hiding" Colby Covington from other fighters, fans tired of Conor McGregor trolling Hasbulla, Ariel Helwani voices brilliant ode to Nate Diaz
Welcome to today's edition of Sportskeeda's daily MMA News Roundup, where we present the biggest UFC updates and other stories from the world of mixed martial arts.
In the latest issue, we talk about a renowned fighter accusing the UFC of trying to protect Colby Covington from fellow fighters, fan disapproval of Conor McGregor's constant attempts at insuling Hasbulla, and more.
#3. Dan Hooker claims UFC doesn't let Colby Covington train at the PI
A schtick started to save his place on the UFC roster, Colby Covington now plays his "heel" persona with near-perfection. However, it comes with a price.
Having beefed with almost every fighter whose name he has pronounced, 'Chaos' has garnered quite the caustic reputation among fellow fighters. To put it simply, no one really likes him, even though few claim that outside of his character, he's a polite and soft-spoken person.
Speaking on the matter in a recent conversation about UFC 279, Dan Hooker and Alexander Volkanovski did not hold back on their opinions of Covington. In an expletive-filled rant, 'Hangman' claimed that Covington cannot train at the Performance Institute anymore to avoid confrontation with other fighters. The UFC has to protect him by allowing to train at the Apex facility at odd hours.
"He's a f***ing idiot and they f***ing hide him. Like, the UFC hide the s**t out of him, bro. They need to, they [other fighters] would slap the s**t out of him. Like, he can't even train at like the PI, so they chuck him across the road... The Apex is like in Vegas. PI's on one side of the road and everyone like trains there and then the Apex is on the other side of the road. He comes in at night at the Apex, goes in the back door to the Apex... he's a little rat, bro."
Watch the video below:
Despite being in different weight classes, Covington has managed to provoke the ire of Hooker with his comments. 'The Hangman' previously said that he plans to hold him accountable, even if that means fighting in the parking yard.
#2. Fans disapprove of Conor McGregor's attempts to insult Hasbulla
One would assume it is beneath a man of Conor McGregor's stature to repeatedly try to troll someone like Hasbulla. However, the Irishman himself doesn't seem to think so.
In a recently deleted tweet that the MMA media did not miss out on screenshotting, McGregor trolled the internet sensation yet again by editing his face on the body of a soft toy and calling him a "little gimp."
(via @TheNotoriousMMA)
Oh boy 👀 (via @TheNotoriousMMA) https://t.co/h03eLZfJnu
Fans were disgruntled by McGregor's unsavory remarks and piled on their disapproval on social media.
@SandhuMMA @TheNotoriousMMA I wouldn't be surprised if @TheNotoriousMMA genuinely tries to fight Hasbulla. Like uncle @ChaelSonnen said, he's turned into a rich little weirdo that lives on cocaine, whiskey and HGH nowadays.
@SandhuMMA @TheNotoriousMMA This is just sad and pathetic.
@SandhuMMA @MMAHistoryToday @TheNotoriousMMA Conor really beefing with a 3 ft tall 19 year old
Read more tweets here.
#1. Ariel Helwani voices tribute for Nate Diaz
BT Sport knocked it out of the park yet again, this time with a goosebump-inducing video for Nate Diaz, voiced by Ariel Helwani and scripted by Chuck Mindenhall. The 3:42 clip dropped a couple of days before what could possibly be Nate Diaz's last fight in the UFC.
Know this:
When I read these words - written by the incomparable @ChuckMindenhall - about @NateDiaz209, I got chills. I got emotional.
Nathan has meant a lot to my career, but more importantly, to fighting. It was a real honor to do this for @btsportufc. https://t.co/KfVdDJf40n
Helwani has always been a known Diaz brothers enthusiast. Ahead of Nick Diaz's fight with Robbie Lawler last year, he penned a heartwarming ode on his Substack channel that every MMA fan should give a read.
Nate Diaz will fight Khamzat Chimaev this weekend at UFC 279 in a matchup that many experts are saying is nothing short of 'lamb to the slaughter'. However, when it comes to the 209 boys of Stockton, California, the MMA community has learned better than to count them out.