Colby Covington Slams The UFC After Being Left Out From The UFC White House Card
Fighters always have breaking points when years of loyalty go unrewarded and promises remain unfulfilled. Sometimes those breaking points lead to polite complaints, other times they explode into public rants. Colby Covington has opted for the latter.
Everyone assumed he was waiting for his opportunity to fight at the UFC White House card. But, it was announced without him in it. Instead, the UFC booked events moving forward while leaving Covington on the shelf for fourteen months. Now he has slammed the organisation for leaving him off the card and accused them of disrespect and mismanagement.
Colby Covington Angry About Not Being On The UFC White House Card
Covington was talking to Submission Radio and expressed his frustration with the UFC. The White House card snub isn’t the only issue generating his outrage right now. The UFC also has him waiting for the winner of Mike Malott versus Gilbert Burns at UFC Winnipeg, meaning he won’t fight until late 2026 at the earliest.
When initially asked about his relationship with the promotion, Covington kept his response characteristically blunt and aggressive. He stated they’ve done him dirty his whole career, offering detailed examples of disrespect that go back years.
“I said I’d fight anybody on God’s green Earth on the White House card just to get the opportunity to fight in front of my hero, Donald Trump. They’re upsetting their hardcore fanbaseThey just have me sitting around for the last 14 months doing nothing, twiddling my thumbs. They haven’t offered me one f***ing fight. Like, they’re supposed to be offering me three fights a year by contractual law…Like, they’re not giving me an opportunity to earn. It’s sh*tty because it’s like, dude, not only are you not giving me a chance to earn, you’re not letting me earn anywhere else.”
The 38 year-old former interim champion expanded his explanation when the host specifically asked about his fourteen months of inactivity. Covington made clear the UFC hasn’t offered him a single fight during this entire period despite contractual obligations. He then referenced how management stripped his interim title years ago because he wouldn’t accept a fight on four weeks notice after nasal surgery.
That reasoning reveals how much frustration Covington harbors about being classified as an independent contractor while being controlled like an employee. Covington holds loyalty toward the promotion based on his years of service and promotional work. But his comments make clear that loyalty means nothing when management decides to shelf a fighter indefinitely.
Hunter Campbell Becomes Primary Target
Covington specifically called out Hunter Campbell during his media appearances this week. Campbell oversees major fight bookings for the UFC now. According to Covington, Hunter has despised him from day one of their working relationship together. He claims Campbell only dealt with him because Covington was the biggest welterweight star at the time. Now Campbell can ignore Covington’s weekly calls requesting fight opportunities without any consequences.
The UFC even blocked Covington from competing against Arman Tsarukyan in Real American Freestyle wrestling recently. That matchup would have been massive for the wrestling promotion after Covington’s dominant performance against Luke Rockhold. But management shut it down immediately, citing rules about active UFC fighters competing against each other externally.
“Hunter’s hated me from the start. He’s never liked to deal with me, but he’s had to deal with me because I was their biggest star in the welterweight division. So they just lost their biggest star and it sucks I can’t get fun fights…We’re treated as independent contractors, but they’re treating me like an employee right now. I tried to go wrestle and do a jiu-jitsu match against Arman, they said no. No active UFC guys are allowed to compete against each other outside the UFC.”
Apparently Tsarukyan will now face Dillon Danis next. Covington concluded by saying he’s done playing the company man role after years of disrespect. His last fight at UFC Tampa against Joaquin Buckley ended in a one-sided defeat. He stepped in on short notice for that bout expecting appreciation. Instead, he got fourteen months of silence and no opportunities whatsoever moving forward. The former interim champion now focuses on Real American Freestyle while waiting to see if the UFC will ever call on him again.
(Image Credit: Bloody Elbow )
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