Colby Covington is not happy with his fight getting stopped at UFC on ESPN 63.
Covington (17-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) suffered a third-round doctor stoppage TKO to Joaquin Buckley (21-6 MMA, 11-4 UFC) in Saturday’s main event at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. Covington was cut on his right eyelid early in the fight and was bleeding profusely throughout.
Considering that he stepped in on three weeks’ notice, Covington is not deterred after dropping his second-straight fight.
“Not bad for no training camp,” Covington said on his YouTube channel.
Covington lost Rounds 1 and 2, but rallied in Round 3 before the doctor intervened to stop the fight. UFC CEO Dana White disagreed with the stoppage, saying that Covington would have been able to continue fighting if this was Las Vegas.
A disappointed Covington felt like the tide was on the verge of changing before the doctor put an end to the fight.
“We’re going to be back stronger than ever,” Covington said. “This is just the beginning for me. I wasn’t at my best tonight. I came off the couch, but it was for the company. I did this for the company that I love so much, that changed my life. I know that there’s still a lot of fight in me, and the best is yet to come. I was just getting warmed up in that fight.
“I think it was tied up 1-1, and I was starting to wear on him. I could see him breathing out of his mouth. I was starting to catch him with more shots, so it’s unfortunate that they stopped it. Even Dana came out and said, ‘If that was in Vegas, that would have never been stopped.’ I took his hardest shots, and they were nothing. They didn’t faze me at all. I was walking right down, so we’ll come back stronger.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 63.
