Colby Covington sent a huge statement to the UFC welterweight division with a dominant performance over former champion Tyron Woodley.
After four-and-a-half gruelling rounds, ‘Chaos’ eventually secured a stoppage victory at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
However, it was the fights he started with Joe Biden, Kamaru Usman and LeBron James which truly sent shockwaves throughout the MMA community and beyond.
The 32-year-old proved too strong and too relentless for Woodley, who looked every inch a 38-year-old former champion.
While Woodley’s career path may seem a little muddled at this stage, the only way is up for Covington – even if his scorched earth policy is likely to detract as many supporters as he attracts.
During his post-fight interview with Jon Anik, Covington took aim at the Democratic presidential candidate and the NBA’s biggest star and then took a call from current President Donald Trump.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the silent majority is ready to make some noise,” Covington said while draped in an American flag. “If you thought that was a beating, wait until November 3rd when Donald Trump gets his hands on Sleepy Joe. That’s going to be a landslide.”
The California-native then dedicated his victory over ‘The Chosen One’ to ‘all the first responders, all the military out there’ before his sensational rant at James.
“This world would not be safe without you guys,” Covington said. “You keep us safe, not these woke athletes, man. I’m sick of these woke athletes, and these spineless cowards like LeBron James.”
With his ‘Keep America Great’ hat on, Covington then had his post-fight interview with Megan Olivi interrupted by a two-minute phone call with Trump following his Saturday night rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
“I’m proud of you man, I’m a big fan and I’m proud of you,” Trump told Covington.
“You’re tough, you have the right spirits. So now go win the next one, and just keep it for a long time, right?
“Just keep that championship for a long time. But you are something… I appreciated the shout-out tonight, too.
“I’m your fan, you’re my fan. Two of a kind, two of a kind.”
The mood then turned more sinister as the No.2 ranked contender at 170lbs started to spew racial insults to current champion Usman.
Both men put everything on the line during their title fight at UFC 245 last December, which saw ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ retain his belt with a fifth-round stoppage where he also broke his bitter rival’s jaw.
Usman joked about the call from Trump, before Covington retorted: ““Who did you get a call from? You get a call from, freaking, your little tribe?
“Did they give you some smoke signals for you? (laughs) You’re a joke Marty Fake Newsman!”