Why did Khabib Nurmagomedov never move up to 170lbs? Colby Covington claims to know the reason
Colby Covington believes he knows why Khabib Nurmagomedov never moved up to the welterweight division.
'The Eagle' is considered to be one of the best fighters to have stepped inside the octagon. Nurmagomedov made his UFC debut in 2012 and went on to dominate the lightweight division until his last fight with the company in 2020. The Dagestani won the UFC lightweight championship and defended it three times before hanging up his gloves for good.
Khabib Nurmagomedov announces his retirement after winning #UFC254
He'll retire at 29-0.
https://t.co/bLeRaif1kg
Having dominated the lightweight division for so long, many expected Khabib Nurmagomedov to move up in weight at some point in his career. However, 'The Eagle' never moved up to the welterweight division and retired as the undisputed lightweight champion.
Addressing the same during a recent interview with James Lynch, Colby Covington suggested that Nurmagomedov never moved up to the 170lbs division because 'The Eagle' feared fighting him:
"He [Khabib Nurmagomedov] never came to 170 because the man's [points to himself] here. He doesn't wanna fight the man, he knew the man that had a great style for him, the guy that was way more well-rounded, stuff his takedowns, being in his face and punching and putting volume on him and doesn't break under cardio. Like, that's what I do best, I would've walked him down."
Watch the interview below:
Colby Covington calls out Leon Edwards for cheating against Kamaru Usman
Colby Covington has called out Leon Edwards for cheating during his first title defense against Kamaru Usman this past weekend. While 'Rocky' defeated Usman to retain the welterweight championship, a lot has been made of the Brit's frequent fouls.
In the fight, Edwards landed two low blows and grabbed hold of Usman's gloves in a grappling exchange. He also held on to the cage to avoid being taken down, which resulted in a point being deducted from 'Rocky' in the third round of the fight.
Speaking about Edwards' controversial moments in the fight in the same interview, Covington had this to say:
"He's [Leon Edwards] out there poking the guy in the eye, kicking him in the n*ts, grabbing the fence and then Herb Dean stops the action. Herb is like, 'Yo, Leon uh what are you doing man, you can't grab the fence.' Then tries to deny it in front of the world James, he's trying to deny it. Dude the whole world just saw you completely blatantly grab the fence and now you're gonna deny it?"
"I have to take the point."
Huge scenes in Round 3 as Edwards gets the point deducted after a fence grab.
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