Controversial UFC welterweight Colby Covington has made headlines again after going on a rant against commentator Jon Anik.
Anik expressed his support for Covington’s rival Belal Muhammad. Covington made a surprise appearance at UFC 286 in London as the back-up for Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman’s main event over Muhammad, with whom he has been feuding lately.
Anik expressed his surprise that Muhammad was not given a chance instead and tweeted his support for him as an alternate.
This tweet did not sit well with Covington, who accused Muhammad of racism and Anik of being a ‘cheerleader’ for him.
Covington’s accusations of racism stem from Muhammad’s recent taunts, calling him a coward and insisting that he has rejected a chance to face him. Covington had also accused Muhammad of getting a title shot because he was white, which he considers clear racism.
”You’re not talking Belal, you’re talking the racist,’ Covington told MMAFighting.
‘That guy is so beyond racist, like, everything he does is racist, the guy’s a freaking joke. He’s saying I’m in this position because of my skin color, because I’m white? That’s clear racism.
In his rant, Covington called Anik a racist and accused him of supporting racism for expressing his support for Muhammad. Covington went on to threaten Anik, warning him that he had ‘poked the bear’ and that he better shut his mouth if he didn’t want to face the consequences.
‘And you know who’s hanging out and associating with that racist? Jon Anik. Jon Anik, you know, supports that racism. He’s [Anik] supposed to be impartial, he’s supposed to have that headset, he’s supposed to be an interviewer, he’s supposed to remain impartial… You want to be a cheerleader? Put down the headset, pick up the pom-poms, go on the side, and be a cheerleader.’
‘You wanted to lick my f***ing balls in London, ‘Oh Colby this’, but then you wanna go back behind the stage and cheerlead for a racist.
‘I don’t want your kids to grow up without a dad, just realize you live in Boca [Raton], I live in Miami motherf***er, you’re not too far from me, so you better shut your f***ing mouth. You poke the bear, now you get the bear comes after you.’
The latest back and forth spat between Covington and Muhammad involved screenshots shared by Muhammad proving that Covington had turned down a bout at UFC 286. Muhammad shared a text message showing that an event against Covington was in the works, but Covington ultimately turned it down to weigh in instead.