Colby Covington‘s long and chaotic UFC run appears to finally be over. After fans observed that the former interim welterweight champion had been removed from the UFC’s active roster, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto revealed that ‘Chaos’ himself had informed the UFC of his decision to retire.
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“Have confirmed with UFC officials that Colby Covington has informed them of his decision to retire,” the ESPN journalist wrote on X.
The timing honestly does not feel random. The update comes at an unusual time for the outspoken welterweight, who has spent recent months publicly criticizing the promotion.
Colby Covington had been working hard to get a spot on the UFC White House card on June 14, especially given how much of his public persona revolves around his support for Donald Trump. Despite this, the UFC left him off the lineup entirely.
That frustration finally spilled over into interviews and livestreams when ‘Chaos’ openly accused the promotion of freezing fighters out when they refused certain matchups.
Have confirmed with UFC officials that Colby Covington has informed them of his decision to retire.
“You have no say (in what happens),” Covington said during a recent livestream with N3on. “Hunter Campbell, who is like the UFC lawyer, he kind of just tells you what direction they’re gonna go and it’s either you take it or leave it, so you don’t really get a choice what you want to do.
“They just leave you and ice you; they won’t give you fights. They’ll let you just sit out and say, ‘Hey, you turned down this fight; now you’re not gonna fight for the year; we’re not gonna make money.’ They just freeze you out.”
He even claimed the UFC blocked him from competing in a wrestling match against Arman Tsarukyan at RAF.
“They just have me sitting around for the last 14 months doing nothing,” the 38-year-old added. “They haven’t offered me one f—— fight. I tried to go wrestle Arman, and they said no.
“How does that make sense? We’re independent contractors. They’re treating me unfairly; I’m sick of it. They’ve done me dirty my whole career.”
Now it seems like all this mistreatment has left him with no option but to call it quits with MMA altogether. Whether fans loved him or despised him, Colby Covington built one of the most controversial careers in the modern UFC era.
After entering the UFC in August 2014 following a few professional fights in CFA, Absolute FC, and Fight Time, he won the interim welterweight gold in 2018 with a victory over Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 225. Over his 17-fight UFC career (12-5), the outspoken provocateur defeated well-known fighters like Demian Maia, Robbie Lawler, Tyron Woodley, and Jorge Masvidal. However, after three failed efforts at undisputed UFC gold against Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards, he was never able to fully reach the top again.
Now, following back-to-back losses, with the last in December 2024 against Joaquin Buckley, and months of public dissatisfaction with the Dana White-led promotion, it seems that one of the UFC’s loudest and most controversial personalities has quietly taken a silent walk away from the sport.
However, it is worth noting that he isn’t the only one who has been removed from the roster.
More UFC exits follow Colby Covington
Colby Covington’s sudden departure feels less like an isolated retirement and more like part of a wider UFC roster cleanup. Along with the former interim welterweight champion, Mayra Bueno Silva, lightweight Brad Riddell, and bantamweight Nathan Fletcher have reportedly been dropped by the UFC.
While their departures did not receive nearly as much attention as Covington’s, the fighters quietly leave behind very different UFC stories.
Bueno Silva’s departure comes after a brutal downward spiral in her career. After getting a title opportunity against Raquel Pennington, the Brazilian seemed to be on track to become the next UFC bantamweight champion, but things quickly unraveled. She went winless in her last six UFC fights, including a loss to Michelle Montague in April.
For a fighter who once looked like a legitimate contender in a thin division, the unexpected fall feels harsh, especially given how quickly momentum fades in the UFC once losses pile up.
Brad Riddell’s situation seems slightly different. ‘Quake’ was once one of the lightweight division’s most entertaining strikers, having established a solid reputation training alongside other veterans like Israel Adesanya at City Kickboxing.
But after suffering three consecutive losses against Rafael Fiziev, Jalin Turner, and Renato Moicano, his UFC run came to a halt.
Riddell was set to return in 2024 after more than a year away, but he eventually withdrew and never competed again.
28-year-old Nathan Fletcher, meanwhile, has only had three fights in the UFC, going 1-2 in the promotion and having last fought Rinya Nakamura in August 2025.
Now, with Colby Covington retiring and multiple names quietly disappearing from the roster at once, it feels like another reminder of how brutally fast the UFC moves on once fighters stop winning consistently.
