Colby Covington Rejects Paddy Pimblett Hype, Claims Islam Makhachev Would Struggle Against Him in RAF
Colby Covington has never exactly been the biggest believer in Paddy Pimblett.
That was clear long before the Liverpool native became the No. 5-ranked fighter in UFC’s lightweight division, and it hasn’t changed now, not even a tad bit.
When the conversation turned to Islam Makhachev's wrestling as UFC's Pound-for-Pound king, Covington went a step further. The former UFC title challenger believes the current welterweight champion’s skill set would not translate particularly well to a pure wrestling environment, like RAF.
Colby Covington Still Isn’t Buying the Paddy Pimblett Hype
Pimblett and Covington have had unfinished business for some time. Their backstage confrontation following UFC 314 only added another chapter to a feud between two of MMA’s biggest stars.
Covington famously confronted Pimblett backstage after the Englishman’s win over Michael Chandler, questioning the quality of the opposition and accusing him of running his mouth. Pimblett, meanwhile, fired back, and the two have continued to take shots at one another since.
When asked about the 30-year-old lightweight, “Chaos” chose to downplay his credentials, “I don’t see anything special. I want to see more. I think there’s still a lot of unproven.” Shrugging off Pimblett’s recent first-round submission win over Benoit Saint Denis, Covington added, “I don’t think he has done anything crazy. Beating a BSD in a submission like that is not an impressive win. That’s a guy that got beat up by the Brazilian kid… (Renato) Moicano. He was beat up by Dustin Poirier, who knocked him out.”
“So, I don’t think that guy is a high-level guy.” The self-proclaimed “King of Miami” then upped the ante, pushing for better matchups - “I want to see him go against Arman (Tsarukyan). I want to see how he fares against Arman. I want to see how he fares against Ilia Topuria. That’s what really going to show how good he is. But I think he’s just a scouser and people love him because he’s got a bowl cut and an English accent.”
Paddy Pimblett Rising at 155
On the flip side, Pimblett has continued to climb the UFC lightweight rankings. He is now 24-4-0, with only a loss against Justin Gaethje in the UFC. However, Covington believes the real test lies in what happens when he shares the Octagon with the division's very best.
When the Full Mount MMA host asked whether the Brit could eventually become a champion, the 38-year-old pointed to vulnerabilities he saw in Pimblett’s fight against Gaethje.
“I don’t know. That’s a tough ask. He is going to definitely need some defensive wrestling because a lot of those top guys up there they’re going to put a lot of pressure on him. He’s got great jiu-jitsu, but jiu-jitsu is only so good until you’re getting punched in the face. I think he got a little bit exposed in the (Justin) Gaethje fight. That’s an older Gaethje as well. He’s a tough kid, he takes a big punch but I don’t think he’s world championship material.”
Covington Believes Islam Makhachev Would Struggle in RAF
Makhachev (29-1-0) might be the UFC’s P4P king, but Covington believes there is a hole in the Dagestani’s game. In his eyes, Makhachev is a better MMA fighter than a pure wrestler. That area, according to the former collegiate wrestler, is traditional wrestling.
“I don’t think Islam (Makhachev) would fare very well. He’s more of a Sambo guy, he likes to roll. He like to expose his back and he comes around to the back a lot. I don’t think he’d fare very well. I think he’d have a really hard time in straight wrestling. He’s good when you can mix up the striking and get people thinking that he’s coming for the takedown. But, in traditional wrestling, Islam would have a lot of trouble.”
Unlike his comments about Pimblett, this was not simply a case of dismissing another fighter’s resume but rather an honest assessment. Now, Makhachev’s Sambo background has helped make him one of the most accomplished grapplers in MMA, but Covington believes the equation changes when the striking and submission threats are taken away.
Naturally, there was also a challenge waiting at the end - “If he ever wants to see if he can prove me wrong, I’d love to welcome him to the RAF mat. I know I can smoke him, too.”
Will RAF rope UFC's champion onto the mat for a future super showdown against its Cruiserweight Crossover champion? Only time will tell!
