"Truth is a force of nature" - Colby Covington agrees with Ben Askren about Jorge Masvidal being afraid of him
Colby Covington has joined Ben Askren in trolling Jorge Masvidal on the internet. 'Chaos' affirmed Askren's claim of Masvidal being afraid of fighting Covington.
Jorge Masvidal's appearance on a Facetime call during the Ben Askren vs. Jake Paul press conference did not sit well with 'Funky'. Askren has responded by taking jabs at 'Gamebred' through several social media posts over the past few days.
In a recent tweet, Askren accused Jorge Masvidal of dodging the Colby Covington fight. Covington responded in the affirmative with his own tweet and became a party to the one-upping game on social media.
UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal became an overnight sensation with a quick knockout of Ben Askren at UFC 239 in July 2019. However, the beef between the veterans was not squashed even after Askren retired from professional MMA.
Askren's impending boxing debut against YouTuber-turned-professional boxer Jake Paul is the latest episode in the rivalry. Jorge Masvidal's close association with Paul has reignited the beef and it has become one of the major talking points heading into the April 17 showdown.
Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal: The fight that delayed Colby Covington's title aspirations
Colby Covington's relationship with Jorge Masvidal deteriorated rapidly following the former's public feud and subsequent departure from American Top Team in 2020.
They were rumored to be the coaches on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter. The potential showdown was the unofficial title eliminator bout to determine the next challenger for the UFC welterweight title currently held by Kamaru Usman.
The fight against Masvidal was a favorable stylistic matchup for Covington, who was expected to get past him.
Kamaru Usman called out Masvidal for the rematch following his win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 258 in February 2021. The UFC went on to book Usman vs. Masvidal 2 as the headliner UFC 261 pay-per-view event, which has left Colby Covington without an opponent.
Since losing to Usman in a back-and-forth fight in 2019, Chaos has competed only once in the UFC. His last fight was a fifth-round TKO win over former champion Tyron Woodley in September 2020.