Colby Covington Goes Full Donald Trump in Latest Interview

No. 3 ranked welterweight contender Colby Covington wants a title shot against champion Tyron Woodley and is out on the campaign trail trying to get it.

The 29-year old claims that “T-Wood” is ducking him. In a recent interview with Submission Radio, Covington channeled his best Donald Trump impersonation, hitting all the talking points from fake news to making the welterweight division great again.

Covington accused Woodley of turning down two fights against him including coaching opposite one another on The Ultimate Fighter.

“Yeah, I thought it was the perfect thing that was gonna happen. The drama that’s there, you know, our history that we have in the gym at American Top Team. And this is a real beef, this is going to spice up The Ultimate Fighter and bring back a different element to the ultimate fighter that it’s been missing the last couple of seasons. So, the UFC wanted to make it happen, but, you know, diva-girl Woodley’s over here crying about a little fake toe injury and a fake shoulder injury. So, it’s just sad. It would have really been a great season, but he’s out here scared in Hollywood, so tough to make it happen,” said Covington.

There were rumblings behind the scenes that Covington and Woodley were being targeted to coach the reality show, but that's about as far as it got. Covington claims there was an actual offer and Woodley turned it down.

“Yeah, no, that was actually a serious thing. I don’t ever spit fake news. I’m not like the fake media. You know, when I say something, I speak truth. The UFC was trying to make it happen, they approached my manager about it, but obviously Tyron Woodley refused the offer,” said Covington.

“That’s two times he’s refused to fight me. If he starts doing it anymore, they’re gonna talk about an interim title or stripping him. So, you know, it’s getting close to that light. He ducked me at UFC 219. The UFC wanted to make Tyron Woodley versus Colby Covington for the welterweight title on Dec. 30 in Las Vegas, and then he ducks me for The Ultimate Fighter show. That’s why he got the shoulder surgery, to make it look good so that he media, and the UFC are like, ‘oh, I got the shoulder surgery so he’s cleared of his name. Oh, it doesn’t make me look bad that I turned down two fights, that I turned down a fight on Dec. 30 versus Colby Covington, but I was good to fight Nate Diaz.’ You know, the truth will speak for itself very soon.”

Woodley has made his own controversial statements over the years. He's said that he's experienced racial prejudice as an African-American UFC champion. Woodley believes that he doesn't get the respect he deserves as a champion and thinks it could be about his skin color. Covington scoffed at those claims and accused the champion of “race baiting.”

“He let’s things get to his emotions. He’s literally a prima donna. That’s the perfect explanation for Tyron Woodley. He tries to race bait. The people that don’t like him and don’t wanna watch him for or think he’s boring, ‘Oh, they’re racist’. That’s his only claim now. So, he’s just trapped, he’s in a corner and he’s defeated before anything. The fans have completely gotten in his head and everybody’s under his skin. He doesn’t know how to handle the position he’s in now, but it’s okay, I’m gonna take over his position as welterweight champ and you will see the division be made great again,” said Covington.

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Woodley is recovering from a December shoulder surgery. He's stated that he'd be ready to return to the Octagon in the first quarter of this year. The two most likely candidates for his return bout are Covington and Rafael dos Anjos. While the UFC is focused more on dos Anjos, Covington says RDA doesn't deserve a title shot and that Woodley isn't a draw.

“Tyron Woodley, all these fans hate him. He wants to be a hero, he wants to be the good guy, all the fans are telling you – I’ve literally had thousands of replies from Twitter that say, ’Tyron, if you knock out Colby I’ll be your biggest fan, I promise I’ll support you for the rest of your career’. Like, aren’t you seeing that I’m your money fight? If you wanted to become a megastar, you have to come and fight me and beat me up. That’s what you have to do to get to the next level. But he’s not seeing that, man, he doesn’t care about that. He’s not in this for his legacy or to be the best welterweight fighter, he thinks he’s looking for a money fight with GSP or Nate Diaz. Those guys aren’t even fighting anymore, they’re out of the picture,” he said.

“There’s no money fight for Woodley. I mean, there’s not a money fight for him because he’s not a draw anyways. He couldn’t sell 100,000 pay-per-views. It’s either me or RDA, but he’s gotta fight someone. He’s also saying that he doesn’t want to fight RDA either. He’s just two-faced, man. When he was number four in the world, he sat out for two years to wait for a title shot. Now I’m number three in the world and I’m clearly the next in line. RDA fought three fights at welterweight. Last year RDA was getting knocked out by a lightweight Eddie Alvarez and getting beat up by Tony Ferguson. That’s never happened to me, no one’s ever beat me up in my career. That dude doesn’t deserve a shot at Tyron Woodley.”

Covington made headlines for his comments made following his win over Demian Maia in Sao Paulo, Brazil in October. In his post-fight interview he called Brazil a “dump” and characterized its citizens as “filthy animals.”