Colby Covington officially retires from active competition, informs UFC of his decision
(Courtesy : UFC)
Colby Covington dropped out of the UFC rankings last month.
Former Interim UFC Welterweight champion Colby Convington has notified UFC of his decision to retire, according to Brett Okamoto of ESPN. The news comes following Covington’s aggressive push to fight on the historic UFC event at the White House, Freedom 250.
Covington expressed displeasure after being left off the card. Notably, he was also dropped from the UFC rankings in April. This was the first time since 2017 that Colby was not ranked in the welterweight division.
The main reason for his removal was prolonged inactivity; additionally, his last win in the division came in 2022 against Jorge Masvidal.
Colby Covington has been removed from the active roster
The former title challenger was also dropped from the active roster, and his profile on UFC.com now lists him as “retired.”
Covington, after starting his UFC career as a humble guy, transformed into a trash-talking personality that turned him into one of the most polarizing figures in MMA. Convington embraced Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” brand and made the fans and media take notice of him.
Colby defeated Rafael dos Anjos in June 2018 to capture the interim UFC Welterweight Championship. He was stripped of the title in September due to medical inactivity. However, Colby managed to position himself as the next contender, using his trash talk.
Convington landed a title shot against the then-undisputed Champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 245. Usman was able to retain the title after securing a fifth-round TKO win. The career-defining rivals met for the second time at UFC 268, but this time it wasn’t as competitive an affair as their first win, with Usman picking up a UD win.
After the second loss to Usman, inactivity defined Colby’s career, and he only managed to score a single win, as mentioned, against his former friend, Jorge Masvidal. Colby was granted another title shot against Champion Leon Edwards, but he failed to secure the title, accumulating another loss.
Colby Covington’s last outing in UFC was against Joaquin Buckley in December 2024, where he suffered a third-round TKO loss. Despite the last loss and inactivity, Covington, as mentioned, was pushing for his inclusion on the White House card.
The former Interim UFC Welterweight champion retires at 38 years after a 12-year career in the promotion, with a professional record of 17-5.
Has Colby Covington retired?
Yes, per ESPN, Convington has notified UFC of his decision to retire.
Why did Colby Covington retire?
As of now, Covington has informed UFC of his decision to retire, though full details behind the move have not yet been publicly disclosed, as he has not publicly commented on his retirement.
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Abhijit Singh is a budding sports journalist with over three years of experience in the field, and a photographer capturing stories through his lens since 2018. With a background in philosophy and political science, he brings a thoughtful, analytical edge to his reporting where every word is guided by curiosity and intent. Whether he's capturing the emotion of a moment or unpacking the deeper narratives within the game, Abhijit’s work is rooted in insight and passion. When he’s not covering sports, he’s often exploring new ideas through reading, traveling or just procrastinating.