While the news cycle for other sports may have slowed down due to coronavirus, there’s still relevant things happening in the UFC – and a rising story right now is the departure of one of the most controversial fighters in the organization from one of its top gyms. That fighter is welterweight Colby Covington, and that gym is American Top Team.
ATT is known for having one of the largest collections of talent in the entire MMA world, with names ranging from Dustin Poirier to Amanda Nunes, and previously, Covington was among the names that trained there. But the relationship between the two wasn’t always the greatest. Covington has been in beefs before with other team members, and while in the past, these tensions didn’t get in the way of his participation with the team, it looks like things have boiled over to an extent to the point where it’s best for both sides to split up.
Covington talked about his departure on The Score MMA, responding quickly and honestly when asked about his name being removed from the team website and whether or not he is still with the team.
“I’m not a member of American Top Team in Coconut Creek. I’m a member of Colby Covington, Inc. I’m a member of Colby Covington business and Colby Covington team,” Covington said. “You can now direct your complaints at me. All the people going to Dan Lambert and American Top Team directing their complaints, up in their feelings: ‘I’m a pro fighter, but I’m going to going to Dan Lambert. “Hey, Dan, I don’t want to fight him in the cage because I know I can’t beat him, but can you protect my precious little feelings?'”
However, despite the split, Covington does claim that he’s still working with some of the same partners – just not under the banner of American Top Team. In this day and age, with the sport growing into a more significant business, it’s not entirely unheard of for a fighter to put their own team together without relying on a larger gym. It remains to be seen, though, how Covington will do in this regard. While building a team independently isn’t impossible, it does require more effort put into networking, and it may be harder to attract top coaches and training partners compared to an established brand such as ATT.
Despite the split, Covington notably isn’t beefing with former coach Dan Lambert, the founder of American Top Team, and one of his main past collaborators. “I owe that guy everything. He gave me an opportunity nine years ago to come train at his gym full-time, have food, money, and a place to live. He never left me out in the cold. He always gave me the opportunity. So I’m very thankful for my time there. He’s still a friend, he’s still a mentor, but I fulfilled my debts there,” Covington continued.
It’s not clear who Covington’s next opponent is, following his December loss to Kamaru Usman for the welterweight title. For now, though, it doesn’t look like his beef with former ATT teammate Jorge Masvidal will turn into an actual fight in the ring. When Covington does step into the ring again, however, it will likely be watched with interest by many – both by fans and those looking to see the controversial fighter take another loss.