Leon Edwards On Colby Covington: ‘His Skills Are Very Limited’

Leon Edwards defends the welterweight title against Colby Covington this Saturday at UFC 296

SI’s MMA Notes, Quotes, and Anecdotes runs every week.

Leon Edwards is tired of hearing about Colby Covington’s cardio.

Courtesy Zuffa LLC

Never confused with MMA’s most exciting competitors, Covington has built his livelihood on a wrestling-heavy style where he wears down his opponents. By the time an opponent may clip him with a shot, Covington has more than likely left him too exhausted to go for the kill. That is Covington’s game plan, which he has executed perfectly against the likes of Jorge Masvidal, Tyron Woodley, Robbie Lawler, and Rafael dos Anjos over the past five years.

But there is reason to doubt Covington entering his welterweight title bout against reigning champion Leon Edwards. Covington, now 35 years old, is about to step into the Octagon for his first fight in 21 months. Edwards believes he has the MAGA-inspired, Donald Trump loving fighter in an extremely vulnerable state.

“Everyone talks about his cardio, but he’s not the same guy that beat Robbie Lawler,” said Edwards. “I’ve heard a lot about that guy, but that was four years ago. What about his skills? His skills are very limited. He’s very scrappy, but there are a lot of loopholes in his skills.”

Dating back to May of 2016, Edwards (21-3, 1 NC) has won 11 of his last 12 bouts. The only time throughout that stretch he did not walk away victorious was due to an accidental eye poke to Belal Muhammad, which ended their bout in a no-contest.

During this iconic run, Edwards won the two most significant bouts of his career, both at Kamaru Usman’s expense. Edwards avenged a prior loss to Usman when he defeated him for the title in August of 2022, knocking out Usman with a viral head kick that will forever define his career. Edwards then won the trilogy bout in March, effectively removing Usman’s will to win in the bout.

Courtesy Zuffa LLC

Now Edwards, 32, shifts his attention to Covington (17-3). Stakes are especially high for the challenger, as this will mark his third attempt at the undisputed welterweight title in his last five fights. Covington lost both bouts for the belt against Usman, and if he loses here, the road back to the title will likely be impossible to attain. Perhaps that is why Covington pushed for this fight to take place in July, which would have left only Edwards with a limited amount of time to recuperate and train after his fight against Usman.

“Maybe that’s why Colby wanted it sooner,” said Edwards. “And maybe he wanted it sooner because he hasn’t fought in almost two years. That’s a lot of time off, and that doesn’t do a lot for a fighter. I needed to rest my injuries, but I was fit and healthy by September. I would have done this in September or October. It was between New York [in November] and December.

“Now this is a chance to cement my legacy and put my name in stone. He’s another guy on my list. I can’t see him sticking around much longer. There are all these young hungry guys coming up. He’s not one of them.”

Former United States President Donald Trump is expected to be cageside at UFC 296. Edwards shared that he finds Covington’s affinity for Trump to be disturbing.

“Isn’t it weird, though?” said Edwards. “Trump can’t fight for him. I think it’s a bit creepy the way Colby loves Trump.”

Courtesy Zuffa LLC

Over the fall, Edwards made headlines when stating his goal to change weight classes and pursue the middleweight championship. But he still has plenty to accomplish as a welterweight, beginning this Saturday.

“I’m not focused on middleweight, not at all,” said Edwards. “I still have a lot of work to do as a welterweight. A dream of mine is to be middleweight world champion, but my first goal is to go down as one of the best welterweights of all-time. That’s by breaking the record for title defenses [nine, set by Georges St-Pierre], and I want the most wins in the division [Edwards has 13, eight shy of Neil Magny’s 21 welterweight victories]. Those are legacy moments I want to add to my career.”

After a remarkable performance against Usman this past March, Edwards is eager to return to the cage. If he is able to defeat Covington, he will further cement himself as the top welterweight in the world.

“I’m going up against someone I don’t like, so that adds motivation,” said Edwards. “It’s going to be a fantastic night, and I can’t wait.”