Colby Covington won big at UFC Fight Night 119 in Sao Paulo, Brazil on Saturday — but he did nothing to endear himself to Brazilian fans. Now, after calling the nation a “dump” among other comments post-fight, he’s doubled-down with a less than genuine apology.
Following the biggest win of his career at UFC Sao Paulo, Colby Covington took the mic — and pulled no punches. While he might have been playing it up as a heel Chael Sonnen style, Covington hit a nerve with Brazilian fans. Calling Brazil a “dump” and its people “filthy animals,” Covington drew the wrath of the fans, who were soon throwing bottles at the welterweight.
Rushed back to his hotel room after the fight, Covington had to watch from afar while welterweight champ Tyron Woodley said he was “ashamed of MMA” because of the comments, and UFC exec David Shaw suggested the promotion would be looking to punish the fighter. At the press scrum following the event, Shaw tackled the situation head on, saying “in terms of the fan reactions with Covington fighting, there’s no way for us to support any fans throwing items at any staff or any fighters.” He added that “having said that, we are taking the situation with Covington very seriously. It’s already being reviewed by our code of conduct committee and it’s something that we are not very happy about.”
Covington, who admitted to MMA Junkie that he was “just trying to promote and make it fun for the fans” has now released a tongue-in-cheek “apology” over the incident. It reads
Formal apology:
I went to work last week. I was screamed at, spit at, assaulted with water bottles and other objects by an angry mob and serenaded by 10000 voices yelling “you are going to die.” My employer had to place security at my hotel room to protect me.
I would like to apologize to any filthy animal I offended by comparing them to my hosts in Sao Paulo.
Sincerely,
Colby Covington
While the apology is clearly an attempt at humor, who knows how fans (especially in Brazil) and the UFC itself will take it. That said, like Sonnen and others before him, Covington has now talked himself into the spotlight. Of course, it helps to have defeated a former two-time title challenger in the process.
My formal apology for #ufcsaopaulo @ufc pic.twitter.com/cwS7OTGK99
— Colby Covington (@ColbyCovMMA) October 29, 2017
