Michael Bisping sees UFC 296 as Colby Covington’s final opportunity at becoming champion.
Covington (17-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) challenges Leon Edwards (20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) for the welterweight title in the Dec. 16 headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Covington, a former interim champion, challenged for the undisputed welterweight title twice against Kamaru Usman but fell short in valiant efforts both times.
“Here’s what is going to make Colby very, very dangerous come fight night,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “He’s (35) years old; this is his last title fight. It’s as simple as that. This will be his third time fighting for the belt, twice against Kamaru Usman, didn’t get the job done.
“Got stopped once, went to a decision the next time. Very competitive fights, though, but it doesn’t matter. He didn’t win. He didn’t become the champion. … This is going to be the last chance for Colby Covington, OK? This really is.”
Bisping believes Edwards’ key to victory is simply keeping the fight standing where he sees a big advantage for the champion – but he doesn’t see it as an easy task.
“If he can maintain range, if he can keep at a distance,” Bisping said, “he can use the jabs, the straight shots, punish Colby with knees and elbows on the inside and use those head kicks in stunning fashion and basically just keep the fight off the ground.
“That’s it in a nutshell. If he can keep the fight off the ground, he’s probably going to retain the belt, but it ain’t going to be easy because Colby is like an Energizer Bunny. He just never stops. He keeps coming and coming and coming. He’s got cardio for days.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.
