UFC News: Colby Covington reveals the truth about "playing a character" for the cameras
Colby Covington was recently criticized for doing an interview where he seemingly admitted that his "heel persona" (bad guy character), is just that - a character. In the interview, he revealed that despite racking up wins, the UFC told him that after his fight against Demian Maia, his contract wouldn't be renewed.
That's when he took the opportunity to trash the entire nation of Brazil post-fight after beating Maia - calling them a bunch of "filthy animals". It went viral and since then, he's exploited his heel persona, using it to garner a lot more attention. There's no denying that it's helped keep him his job and skyrocketed his popularity, but he's been put over the burner recently because of supposedly "admitting" that he's just playing a character.
While that's quite believable (as many have previously confirmed he's nothing like his character off the cameras), Covington told MMA Junkie that he's not playing a character and that he's "just being real":
“I’m not playing a character, I’m just being real. I think they don’t know what they’re talking about. I think I’m just turning it up to 11. I’m not afraid to speak my mind and speak what I really think inside. Before I was keeping those thoughts in because I was worried about how people would judge me, how the media would react, how the UFC would judge me for it. Now I don’t give a (expletive). I would care less what they think of me. At the end of the day I’m what’s good for this sport and I’m making money for this company.”
He said that post-UFC 245, he might turn down some of the post-fight antics, but it's still a huge platform for him. He emphasized on the entertainment and show-biz aspect of the fight game, which he feels justifies the things he says and does:
“I’m just going to be myself always. I can’t say if I’m going to do one thing or not, I’m just going to be real. That’s what I’ve always been, is real. Maybe I’ll turn down some of the post-fight antics a little bit, but this is the entertainment show-business for a reason and I’m here to put on a show for the fans. It’s not just when you fight. You’ve got to entertain them year-round and that’s why the fans love me so much.”
Colby Covington takes on UFC Welterweight Champion Kamaru Usman in the final PPV of the decade. It's a battle of two wrestlers and Covington is the former Interim Champion (who never lost the title).
It's going to be interesting and we urge you to tune into Sportskeeda for our coverage of UFC 245!