UFC 272: Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington to settle score in five-round main event
- ‘Gamebred’ and ‘Chaos’ will finally face off in the Octagon on March 5, with former teammates’ heated rivalry having simmered for years
- Both fighters are in a must-win situation, having each suffered two losses apiece to welterweight champion Kamaru Usman
Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington will soon have the opportunity to settle their score.
According to a report from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, the two welterweight contenders will collide at UFC 272 on March 5, in Las Vegas Nevada. Their fight will serve as the card’s main event, meaning it will be contested over five rounds, rather than the three rounds typical for non-title bouts.
Masvidal and Covington, both Americans, spent many years as close friends and training partners at American Top Team in South Florida, and even lived under the same roof for a period. But as they simultaneously reached the top of the welterweight division, their relationship began to sour.
Today, they share one of the most hostile rivalries in all of MMA.
The 37-year-old Masvidal (35-15) is riding back-to-back losses to reigning welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, first by unanimous decision, then by second-round knockout. Those setbacks were preceded by a trio of star-making stoppage wins over Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz.
Covington (16-3) also knows Usman well. The 33-year-old challenged the champion for the title in his last Octagon appearance, but came up short via a narrow unanimous decision. It was his second loss to Usman, after a fifth-round TKO at the end of 2019. Those two losses were interspersed by a fifth-round stoppage win over former welterweight champ Tyron Woodley.
