RDS and Sportish will present the preliminary card for UFC 272 at 8 p.m. tonight.
UFC 272 LIVE RESULTS
” Family. »
That was the only word of the Instagram post, followed by a few hashtags. There was also a photo of three UFC fighters, entwined around the waist and shoulders, and tagged in these hashtags as “Future Champions.”
When Jorge Masvidal posted this photo on January 13, 2015, the word “Family” perfectly described the bond between these athletes training together in the American Top Team (ATT). The gym in Coconut Creek, Florida was (and still is) the home of a tight-knit group, to the point where two of the men in the photo didn’t just share a gym. Masvidal and Colby Covington were roommates.
Like a family.
See this post on Instagram
Seven years later, there is no more family. All three then-rising fighters are now veterans of their sport and their championship ambitions have yet to be met, save for Covington’s brief reign as interim UFC welterweight champion. The third man in the picture, Yoel Romero, doesn’t even play in the UFC anymore. As for Covington and Masvidal, who have long since ceased living together, their acrimonious rivalry is common knowledge and Covington was shown the door of the ATT.
However, Covington and Masvidal will again share a space on Saturday evening, in the octagon, in the final of UFC 272 presented at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Bitterness, betrayal, sadness, threats… The seeds of this rivalry were planted in the fall of 2017, when Covington traveled to Brazil to face local favorite Demian Maia. Convington’s teammate, Masvidal had faced Maia earlier in the year in a duel for another welterweight title shot. The Brazilian then won by split decision, but then lost in a world title fight against Tyron Woodley. In order to rise again among the contenders in the category, Maia subsequently turned to Covington.
The latter then had a record of 12-1, but he struggled to establish himself as a must at welterweight. He had to find a way to get attention. That’s what he did by dominating Maia that night in Sao Paulo. The one nicknamed “Chaos” thought, however, that it was not enough. Immediately after the referee raised his hand, Covington took the microphone in the octagon and called the Brazilian fans “dirty animals” and their country a “garbage dump”. All smiles as he left the cage and surrounded by UFC security guards, Covington was then booed, in addition to being the target of projectiles thrown by angry spectators.
A villain was born.
Covington has since stood out as an outspoken fighter, even making xenophobic and racist remarks.
Despite this, Covington has grown in popularity, helped in particular by high-profile kudos from former US President Donald Trump.
All this, however, was not without consequences. The Brazilian ATT fighters refused to train with him, which only soured the mood within the team. Tension then mounted when Masvidal alleged that Covington ripped off his coach, Paulino Hernandez, and failed to honor a payment agreement. Eventually, when Covington directed his verbal attacks at teammates Masvidal and Dustin Poirier in 2020, gym owner Dan Lambert decided enough was enough. He told Covington that he was no longer welcome at the ATT.
In short, a lot can happen in the space of just a few years…
“I get to train with the best guys in the world at American Top Team,” Covington once said. “I train a lot with Jorge Masvidal, my best friend. »
My best friend.
“Colby and I trade techniques. I show him how to attack, he shows me how to wrestle,” Masvidal said at the time, referring to Covington as “ [son] little brother “.
That was in the past. Things have changed.
“I am not your teammate. I’m not your roommate, Jorge,” Covington recently claimed. “Now I am your enemy. »
Masvidal’s response: “If you’re ready to turn the page on our friendship so quickly, it’s because there never was a friendship. »
Friends, former friends or just enemies, whatever happens on Saturday night, it surely won’t be the end of the story between Covington and Masvidal.
