Former UFC middleweight champ Michael Bisping warned Colby Covington against a potential move up a division.
Colby Covington is still plotting his next fighting move after a doctor’s stoppage loss to Joaquin Buckley at UFC Tampa last month. After three lineal title losses and a brutal defeat to Buckley, Covington might be on the final legs of his UFC career.
Ahead of a potential return to the cage later this year, Covington has teased a potential move to the middleweight division for his next fight. Sean Strickland, who faces Dricus du Plessis in a middleweight title rematch at UFC 312, was Covington’s recent callout target in an interview with Submission Radio.
If Covington is serious about a move to 185lbs, a former middleweight king says to be careful what you wish for.
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Michael Bisping advises Colby Covington against middleweight move
During a recent segment on his YouTube channel, UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping discounted Covington’s potential middleweight climb.
“Colby Covington vs. Sean Strickland, first of all, Colby’s too small, simple as that. I don’t think he’s going to be fighting Sean Strickland anytime soon” Bisping said of Covington. “I mean, for example, if Strickland goes out there and beats Dricus Du Plessis, there’s no way. There’s no way in hell that Colby moves up to 185 and gets an immediate title fight.
“We know he’s used to getting a lot of title fights. He fought Kamaru Usman, right? He lost in Round 5. Then he beats Tyron Woodley, then he fights Kamaru Usman again. He beats Jorge Masvidal, and then he gets a title shot again, right? You’ve had three title fights at 170. You ain’t going to walk into a title fight in your inaugural fight at 185 pounds.” (h/t MMA Junkie)
In addition to a potential move to middleweight, Covington has previously entertained a possible move down to the lightweight division, which is unlikely now given his age. Covington has competed at 170lbs for the entirety of his fighting career.
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Colby Covington is in an unusual position after three title losses
Covington is searching for his first victory since a unanimous decision win over Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272. Since then, he lost to Leon Edwards in his third welterweight title shot at UFC 296, and the TKO defeat to Buckley at UFC Tampa.
Covington has lost four of his last six fights overall, including two welterweight title losses to then-champion Kamaru Usman. He hasn’t won consecutive fights since 2018-2019 when he outpointed former UFC titleholders Robbie Lawler and Rafael dos Anjos in back-to-back outings.
If Covington moves up to middleweight, Bisping believes it’ll be a significant mistake and set him back even further. In the meantime, speculation continues to run rampant regarding Covington’s fighting future.
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