UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns recently expressed skepticism regarding Colby Covington’s claim that he competed against Leon Edwards with a broken leg.
Covington revealed after his loss to Edwards at UFC 296 that he had suffered a broken foot in the first round of the match. He posted an x-ray showing a fracture and said it impacted his performance.
However, Burns doubts the legitimacy of Covington’s injury based on the lack of evidence at the time and Covington’s behavior after the bout.
During an interview with The AllStar, Burns was asked about Covington’s broken leg claim. He said: “I don’t know. Let me think a little bit. I don’t think he [showed evidence of the injury]. It’s very hard to say.”
The interviewer informed: “We never saw, like, his foot in a cast. He just showed an x-ray. Right?”
Burns confirmed, saying: “No, he was going everywhere. He started walking everywhere. I don’t see his name on the x-ray.”
Burns pointed out that Covington was seen going about his normal activities soon after the Edwards match, with no sign of an injury or cast on his leg.
“We saw him, this guy walking everywhere. He [was in] Miami, playing poker, going everywhere. We hadn’t seen no cast. We didn’t see anything, so I don’t know. It’s very hard to believe on anything that Colby says, you know. You don’t know when the show, you don’t know when he’s the character.”
Many critics have accused Covington of making excuses after losing to Edwards. The timing of Covington’s injury reveal without evidence that he was dealing with a broken leg right after UFC 296, makes Burns highly skeptical.
“I just think a lot of guys said that he didn’t show up. I think he did show up, but I think Leon just shut him down, you know. And I think me always said people don’t give him a lot of credit, but I think he’s very, very good. And he just shut the guy down.”
Burns believes Covington is past his prime and grasps for relevance by stirring up controversy.
Currently, Burns is preparing for his match against Jack Della Maddalena. The two are scheduled to compete in UFC 299 on March 9.