Colby Covington is doing just fine outside the UFC, but ‘Chaos’ still has one pretty big gripe with his latest assignment. His upcoming Real American Freestyle showdown with Khamzat Chimaev is going down overseas, and the 38-year-old isn’t exactly thrilled about it. After all, if anyone should be getting the American treatment, he thinks it’s him, especially after becoming one of RAF’s biggest stars.

“It’s not my favorite thing in the world,” Covington told Ariel Helwani. “This is Real American Freestyle. We’re a company based out of America.

“I am the American Champion and the first Cruiserweight Crossover Champion of RIF history.”

Colby Covington is set to go one-on-one with former UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev on November 14 at RAF Abu Dhabi, and this is about as tough as it gets for ‘Chaos’ since he shifted his focus away from MMA.

The 38-year-old hasn’t stepped into the MMA cage since December 2024 and officially called it a career in May. Since then, he’s gone all-in on wrestling and quickly become one of RAF’s biggest names. So, he thinks that gives him a completely different stake in RAF compared to ‘Borz.’

In his eyes, he isn’t just showing up, getting paid, and heading home. Instead, he’s one of the guys actually trying to make the promotion bigger.

“So, I’m the draw of this division, of this company,” he continued. “I’m putting it on my back. I’m putting everything behind it. This guy doesn’t really care about the company. He’s just trying to do cash grabs.

“I’m trying to actually build in this company. I’m actually invested in this company. I’m an equity partner in this company. So I want to see the growth of this company more than any company on planet Earth.”

Colby Covington isn’t thinking small when it comes to RAF. He sees the promotion as something that could grow into a massive wrestling powerhouse, and he believes the people behind it have everything needed to make that happen. And that’s exactly why the former interim welterweight champion wants his RAF run to stay closer to home. If he gets his way, future appearances will be on American soil.

“I want to see Real American Freestyle as a billion-dollar company,” he added. “I know all the minds behind it, Chad Bronstein, Izzy Martinez, and the legendary Eric Bischoff; they have all the tools, and they have the smarts and the wits and the network to get this done.

“So, I’m all in on Real American Freestyle, and I’m hoping that my future matches can just stay in America because this is the greatest country on God’s green earth.”

Still, RAF has been spreading its wings beyond the U.S. during its 2026 season. The promotion took its crossover wrestling show overseas for the first time with RAF Georgia on July 11 at Tbilisi Arena before heading to Russia for RAF Moscow on September 5.

Now, Abu Dhabi is next on the list, giving RAF another international stop as the promotion continues taking its wrestling product beyond American soil. However, the location isn’t the only thing Colby Covington has wanted to shake up in his RAF career.

Colby Covington wants Sean Strickland before the Khamzat Chimaev challenge

Before agreeing to fight Khamzat Chimaev, ‘Chaos’ was also tied to a potential showdown with Sean Strickland, the only man to beat Khamzat Chimaev in MMA.

‘Tarzan,’ who dethroned Chimaev at UFC 328, was reportedly keen on facing Covington at RAF 14 in Las Vegas on October 23. But the two couldn’t see eye to eye on the weight. Reports claimed Sean Strickland wanted the bout at a 200-pound catchweight, while ‘Chaos’ pushed for 190 pounds. With neither side budging, the matchup ultimately went up in smoke.

Colby Covington, however, wasn’t having any of it. He quickly slapped the report with a “fake news” label and made it clear he’d happily wrestle the middleweight champion at whatever weight the former UFC champion wanted later this month.

“Fake news. I’ll wrestle @sstricklandmma at any weight he wants October 23rd,” he tweeted. “@RAFWrestlingUSA in Las Vegas. Book it ChadBronstein @IzzyStyle @EBischoff.”

For now, though, a Strickland-Covington wrestling match remains up in the air. ‘Tarzan’ is expected to defend his UFC middleweight title before the end of 2026, but his next challenger hasn’t been confirmed yet.

So, until that fight is sorted, it’s hard to say whether Strickland will even be available—or interested—in settling things with the 38-year-old on the wrestling mat.

Till then, Colby Covington has only one thing on his mind: Khamzat Chimaev. And ‘Chaos’ isn’t walking into this one with a simple belief that he can win. He sounds downright convinced he already knows how the whole thing is going to play out.

“I don’t think Ariel. I know I’m gonna break him,” he told Ariel Helwani.

‘Borz’ has already built quite the RAF résumé of his own. After making his debut against Dillon Danis, he quickly added UFC veterans Tyron Woodley and Gilbert Burns to his list of wins last month.

Meanwhile Covington enters the matchup on a dominant five-match winning streak. He captured the inaugural RAF crossover cruiserweight title by defeating top UFC contender Arman Tsarukyan, then solidified his reign with a flawless 10-0 shutout against former UFC champion Belal Muhammad.

Now, Colby Covington is taking his title and unbeaten RAF record outside the U.S. for the first time, with Khamzat Chimaev waiting for him in Abu Dhabi. ‘Chaos’ may have plenty of confidence heading into the showdown, but there’s still one thing he clearly wishes he could change: where it’s happening.