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Colby Covington ‘Has Laid Groundwork’ to Fight Islam Makhachev Post UFC 296: UFC Veteran

Souvik Roy
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Colby Covington Ropes In Khabib Nurmagomedov to Berate UFC Champion Islam Makhachev for This Reason

Currently, most UFC fans are awaiting the coveted UFC 296 scheduled for 17 December. But, they may also remember what the noted UFC star, Colby Covington, said if he manages to claim the UFC welterweight gold in the main event of that night. In an interview on ‘James Lynch’s’ YouTube channel, ‘Chaos’ revealed that he would like to fight Islam Makhachev for his first probable title defense, after UFC 296.

This also became the topic that the noted UFC legend, Chael Sonnen, talked about in one of his most recent video on YouTube. ‘The American Gangster’ put up his opinion about how Covington made a pretty legit call out when he chose to go for Makhachev.

Sonnen appreciated Covington’s style of calling out Makhachev saying,

“Colby has already laid the groundwork to fight Islam Makhachev.”

But he further opined that Makhachev may be pretty willing to accept this fight too. Well, a sizeable chunk of fans may also agree with the reasons that ‘The Bad Guy’ put up with his opinion. He said:

“Islam has a wildly difficult time getting to 155. But he’s a champion there, he’s a main event there. Which is also a reason he’s staying there. If he could find himself with a championship opportunity up a weight class without going through the suffering, I personally believe, I haven’t asked Islam, I haven’t asked Ali, I believe he’ll find that very attractive.”

However, Sonnen also indicated that the materialization of the Covington vs. Makhachev fight may be concerning for the other UFC welterweights. But there’s one fighter in particular who may be the most affected by this bout.

The Colby Covington callout will affect the next welterweight title contender

Fighters moving up and down weight classes is a common event nowadays. Still, UFC championship fights are mostly held between two regular fighters in the weight class. But Covington has already mentioned that he wants to disrupt this order if he manages to defeat Leon Edwards at UFC 296.

However, it would certainly mean that the regular UFC welterweights have to wait a lot longer to get a shot at the divisional title. The promotion may not have decided which welterweight will get a shot at the title after UFC 296. Still, fans see a strong case for the famed UFC welterweight, Belal Muhammad. The fighter is on a superb 10-fight undefeated streak. This has got several fans urging Dana White and Co. to provide him with the next welterweight title shot.

However, it’s quite apparent that Muhammad’s title shot directly depends on whether the Covington vs. Makhachev bout materializes. But, before that ‘Chaos’ also has a ‘Rocky’ task to accomplish at UFC 296.

About the author

Souvik Roy

Souvik Roy

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The coveted boxing bout between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson in 2002 was the first combat sports event that Souvik ever witnessed. However, he fell for the UFC when he knew about it in 2010. After starting as an occasional viewer back then, Souvik has been watching UFC events almost regularly from late 2017. He began his career as a UFC(MMA) and combat sports journalist in the year 2022 after gathering a lot of valuable knowledge about MMA and a few other combat sports disciplines. He has written more than 1300 articles about various UFC and other combat sports events prior to joining The SportsRush. Apart from being a journalist, Souvik is also an ardent fan of the UFC. Hence, he always looks to have conversations about the same with others. He has a deep affinity for striking part of MMA and other combat sports and Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier is the warrior of his choice in the current UFC roster. Souvik also serves as the Lead Vocalist of a rock band during his time free from publishing reports.

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