Photo by AP Photo/Jim Young
- Colby Covington, UFC super villain, just scored the biggest win of his career, dominating Robbie Lawler after a five-round masterclass in New Jersey.
- Covington, a MAGA hat-wearing cagefighter with a megaphone, is one of Donald Trump’s biggest fans.
- And members of the Trump family, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, were cageside and seemingly inspired him to victory.
- "Give it up for the Trumps!" Covington said in the Octagon after his win Saturday. "They’re keeping America great — woo!"
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Colby Covington produced a masterclass performance against Robbie Lawler at a UFC event in New Jersey on Saturday, while his "family friends" Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump watched cageside.
Covington received the Presidential seal of approval hours before the bout as Donald Trump told him to "fight hard" and that he’s a "real champ."
While Trump was not watching live, his two sons were present and they seemingly "inspired" Covington to one of his biggest wins to date.
It took place in Newark’s Prudential Center, just moments after Covington wound the crowd up by walking to the Octagon while Kurt Angle’s theme song in WWE played, prompting the New Jersey crowd to chant "you suck" over and over.
Revelling in the role of the villain, Covington strutted into the cage and went to work by scoring a partial takedown in the opening minute.
This set the pace for the entire fight. Lawler got up, and with his back to the fence thrust a kneecap into Covington’s chest. But Covington refused to abate his wrestling game. He dragged him to the floor multiple times and applied chokes on the mat.
Covington’s domination continued into the second. He out-punched Lawler when it was a striking fight, and made the veteran work, repeatedly, when he tied him up on the canvas or against the fence.
In the third, Lawler landed his most significant blow of the fight when he thumped Covington’s cheek with a ferocious left hook. But the story of the fight was not about what Lawler could do, but what Covington could — and Covington could do a lot, at a high pace, from opening bell to closing.
The fourth and fifth rounds were no different, as Covington peppered Lawler’s face and body with short, crisp punching. These weren’t knockout punches, but unrelenting blows. Covington wanted to stick his fist into Lawler’s mouth, his uppercut to the jaw, and blows to each side of the head, just to put Lawler off his game-plan.
And it worked perfectly.
Jimmy Smith, the MMA commentator, described Covington’s strategy as "death of a thousand papercuts."
His performance was so impressive that after the finish, he celebrated by the fence, staring at the Trump family, and received a thumbs up from Donald Trump Jr.
Photo by AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
After his unanimous decision win was confirmed (with scores of 50-44, and 50-45 twice), Covington got on the microphone and said that he was "truly inspired by the first family in the building," adding: "Give it up for the Trumps! They’re keeping America great … woo!"
After a brief interview in the middle of the Octagon he stormed out of the cage with an unofficial belt over one shoulder, the American flag on the other, and sought out the actual UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, who he wants to fight next.
That bout could take place in November if it is ratified by the UFC president Dana White, and the Trump family will likely be cageside for that fight, too.
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Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Alan Dawson)