Colby Covington has claimed that he’s in talks with the UFC about fighting on the White House card on June 14th, and has named Paddy Pimblett as the ideal opponent for the one-of-a-kind show.
“Yeah I’ve been negotiating with the UFC for the White House card,” Covington said on the Valuetainment Comedy show. “That’s the one that I want. I told them this is important to my legacy and important to my career. This would be the biggest fight I’ve ever had, it’s a fight on the South Lawn in front of the President would be the greatest honor of my career. We’re in negotiations right now for it.”
It makes sense in some respects that Covington would be considered for the event given that he’s been the most outspoken supporter of President Trump and the ‘MAGA’ movement in the UFC over the years.
That being said, the 37-year-old Covington’s relevance and star power in the UFC has declined significantly in the past few years after losing four of his last six fights.
Lackluster performances in his last two defeats in particular against Leon Edwards and Joaquin Buckley have damaged his reputation and made him a riskier option for the UFC to put on a high-profile card like the White House one.
Still, Covington certainly knows how to push peoples buttons to draw interest in his fights, and he’s also looking to add to his chances of being included by suggesting that he could go up against one of the most popular stars on the roster at this moment in time in Paddy Pimblett.
“I really like the fight with Paddy Pimblett,” Covington said. “He had shown interest that he might want to come up a weight class to welterweight. He’s cutting a lot of weight to get to 155. He weighs like 200. He looks like shit.
“Even the doctors told him, dude, you’re organs are going to fail if you keep cutting to lightweight, like he’s pretty much telling him you need to go up a weight class. I love that fight, plus, it’s a fight where it’s an American vs. a British guy. I don’t want to fight an American guy on an American card on the 250th birthday of America.”
One fighter who is not impressed with Covington’s idea of fighting Pimblett is Bo Nickal, who had been eager to face him at the event.
“Colby talks crap about me the n says he wants to move to 185. I say okay let’s fight at the White House,” Nickal responded on X. “Now he’s trying to run away. What a wimp. Man up and take your beating.”
