“I’m in my prime right now, I want to go capitalize,” said Colby Covington in December 2023. One would have expected to see him more active in 2024, but the reality is he fought just once. However, the occasional shots he took at Khamzat Chimaev looked like something was brewing. From giving him an offensive nickname in true ‘Chaos’ fashion to calling out the Chechen’s crypto pump and dump scheme, Covington has not backed away from voicing his opinion on ‘Borz’. Well, he is at it again!

What did he say this time? Hear it from the man himself. In a new interview with ‘Submission Radio’, Covington stated:

“I wanted that fight for a long time. He ran from the fight, he couldn’t make weight. He was just unprofessional and, you know, the guy was juicing. He quit. The guy was freaking retiring to the common cold, I’m not going to be afraid of someone who’s retiring to common cold. I don’t see anything serious about him, I know I can stop his takedowns, then it becomes a striking fight. And I don’t know if his cardio can hang for five rounds.

“We saw in the Gilbert [Burns] fight, how Gilbert really exposed his cardio. He doesn’t have good cardio. If you can stuff those takedowns the first, second round and get him to deep waters, he is not that good of a fighter. So if he is able to get you down that first takedown in the first minute it two, yeah, then he is dangerous, because then he can implement his will on you. But if you can stuff those first couple takedowns, he becomes human and he becomes a very beatable guy.”

It is true that many fans have been questioning Chimaev’s cardio. So before his fight against Robert Whittaker at UFC 308, he decided to show how he wasn’t affected by the criticism. “Everyone talks about my conditioning, if [Whittaker] survives 5 rounds, he will be destroyed 5 rounds,” ‘Borz’ confidently stated. However, the entire fight lasted only three minutes and 34 seconds. Chimaev submitted Whittaker in round 1 and so, people didn’t really get the opportunity to see him gas out.

But let’s get real for a second. ‘Chaos’ and ‘Borz’ may be exchanging verbal blows, but both have enough turmoil in their own weight classes. Though Covington is gearing up for nothing more than verbal bouts, Chimaev, on the other hand, has set his sights on middleweight dominance.

While both now compete in different divisions, we don’t really know if all this back-and-forth is a genuine disdain or just a clever PR move. Think about it. The welterweight division already has contenders like Leon Edwards and Shavkat Rakhmonov waiting for their chance. Meanwhile, the middleweight division is heating up, with Dricus Du Plessis defending his belt and Sean Strickland right behind.

So why add fuel to a cross-division rivalry when both weight classes are already on fire?

Is Colby Covington-Khamzat Chimaev a possibility?

If Covington can take digs, so can Chimaev. In an interview with ‘The MMA Hour’ which dates back to March 2023, ‘Borz’ made his case: “He lied because they called me four times. Why didn’t it happen? The UFC wanted, why didn’t it happen? Someone said, ‘No.’ I know it’s not me.”

“I go out with the media and (told) everyone I want to fight with Colby, I posted the picture on Instagram, and Twitter, and everywhere I spoke about it, I wanted to make the show.”

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It seems both Covington and Chimaev are accusing each other of ducking the fight.

But here’s where it got juicy. Chimaev didn’t just think he could beat Covington, he thought it was an easy fight. “For me, it’s easy fight. I’m a much better grappler, much better wrestler… How is he going to hurt me? He’s too little boy.”

Does Covington really want this fight, or is he just staying relevant? His brash ‘chaotic’ persona, perfected over the years, has made him one of the UFC’s most polarizing figures. Remember his infamous verbal takedown of Brazil in 2017? That moment turned him into a household name.

On the other hand, Chimaev is walking the talk. At 14-0, the undefeated fighter has proven himself to be a monster in the cage. Regardless, the drama outside the Octagon has fans more invested than ever. Do you think Covington versus Chimaev will happen? Let us know in the comments below.