Leon Edwards rightfully claimed his place at the top of the welterweight division after defeating Kamaru Usman for the second time. He silenced his doubters, who claimed that his previous win was a fluke. Moreover, the UFC designated Colby Covington as the backup fighter for the UFC 286 headliner. But he didn’t get the chance to step inside the octagon. Let us look at the events that led to his selection for the backup role.

Leon Edwards was asked at the post-fight press conference if he’d consider running it back against Kamaru Usman. However, the British champion rejected that idea and stated that he had already fought ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ thrice and believed there were other fighters who deserve a chance.

Moreover, Dana White announced that ‘Chaos’ is in line for Edwards‘ title next. Colby Covington hasn’t fought inside the octagon since March 2022, when he defeated Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272. He has won three out of his last five fights. However, the UFC boss went ahead with his decision to choose him as the credible challenger to the title. Let us see why.

Colby Covington accepted the replacement role at a day’s notice

The former interim welterweight champion mentioned that White called him three weeks prior to the UFC 286 PPV and asked him to stay ready in case one fighter opted out. He appeared in the post-fight press conference and said that he came into the fight on a day’s notice and had cut 18 pounds in a relatively short amount of time.

This was the reason why White preferred to give the 2-time title challenger another opportunity at the Welterweight title, over Khamzat Chimaev, Jorge Masvidal, Gilbert Burns, and even Conor McGregor, who expressed his interest in going for the welterweight title. The UFC president has always been a fan of loyalty and that is why he has rated guys like McGregor and likes doing business with them.

White also mentioned at the post-fight press conference that it is logical to give Colby an opportunity at the title since he did what was asked of him coming into UFC 286. He also mentioned that ‘Chaos’ is already a high-ranked fighter in the division. So it makes complete sense for the UFC boss to go ahead with Covington as the next challenger.

READ MORE: Dana White Reveals Real Reason Why MMA Legend Anderson Silva Refused to Attend UFC 286

What are your thoughts on Dana White’s decision? Let us know in the comments down below.

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